Case studies

Our client's wife died following surgery to remove her gall bladder in which the operating surgeon failed properly to identify her anatomy.

Our client underwent a prostatectomy for which no prior tests or investigations had been conducted. The surgery itself left him incontinent and impotent and despite attempts at remedial surgery these problems remained.

Our client was undergoing surgery for recurring breast cancer when she suffered a burn to her breast. She understood that the burn was caused by a theatre lamp being lowered and coming into contact with her skin. As a result, she needed further surgery a week later to remove the area of burnt skin.

Our client underwent a laparoscopic cholecystectomy (removal of his gall-bladder) due to multiple gallstones. He was appropriately advised before the operation that it might be necessary to convert to an open procedure, a laparotomy, due to the possibility of internal abdominal adhesions as a result of previous abdominal surgery for bowel cancer.

Our client received morphine for pain relief, but was given a significant overdose that resulted in her suffering a near-death experience and post-traumatic stress disorder.

We have recently settled a claim against a private spinal surgeon for negligent surgery to correct scoliosis which left our client suffering significant neurological damage. She has long-term severely impaired bladder function.

Our client underwent ACL reconstruction to repair damage to the ligament. This involves creating a tunnel through the femur (thigh bone) and tibia (one of the two bones in the lower leg). A graft is then taken from the hamstring, inserted into the tunnel and secured.

In this case our client sadly ended up requiring a below knee amputation with reduced life expectancy of between one and two years.

Our client had a temporary colostomy whilst she was treated with radiotherapy for anal cancer. After the successful cancer treatment, the temporary colostomy was reversed, but she suffered on-going problems and eventually decided to have a permanent colostomy.

Testicular torsion is a relatively rare occurrence, but when it arises it requires treatment within a very short timescale or the testicle is at risk of being lost.

Our client broke her leg during a charity parachute jump. The fracture did not unite properly and her treating surgeons decided a bone graft was needed. Unfortunately, they neglected to identify an infection in the wound that was diagnosed only when our client experienced severe pain because of growing pressure inside her plaster.

Following successful surgery in which a large, benign tumour was removed from our 8-year old client's brain by frontal craniotomy, she was transferred to the neurology ward.