A man who has been left with permanent neurological symptoms after hip replacement surgery has been awarded £455,000 in compensation.
After the surgery, he developed a large haematoma that was pressing on nerves and causing numbness in his feet, but this wasn’t detected after medics failed to properly examine him post-operatively.
The claimant, a man in his 50s, sought the help of specialist solicitor, Miriam Bi of Medical Solicitors, to make a medical negligence claim for his injuries.
Case summary
The claimant ‘C’ had the childhood hip disorder Perthe’s Disease, where blood supply issues cause bone deterioration in the hip. This led to him requiring a hip replacement at the age of 51.
After surgery on his left hip in January 2015, he was in a great deal of pain and the wound was leaking. He also had numbness in his big toe on the left foot and developed a blister on his heel. The consultant who saw C on the recovery ward told him surgery had been difficult due to the condition of C’s hip.
C was discharged and the notes said there were no complications despite the numbness and blister.
C was then diagnosed with foot drop, a pressure sore to the heel, and subsequently developed a DVT which required anticoagulants.
At a check-up in March, C had an x-ray which showed no sign of inflammation in the bone. He contacted the hospital the following day as he was unable to straighten his leg; he still had foot drop and the ulcer on his heel.
He saw the consultant who noted leg pain and swelling as well as post-operative sciatic nerve palsy, but said the tightness was because the surgery had ‘lengthened’ him and just needed extra stretching. The consultant showed C exercises he could do at home and referred him for physiotherapy.
By April, C had limited movement in his big toe, but the consultant was hopeful that the foot drop would completely recover.
In June, C still had neurological symptoms so was seen by an orthopaedic specialist who requested nerve conduction studies. This showed damage to the peroneal nerve below the knee. Post-operative bleeding had caused damage to the nerve.
C was told it would be 18 months before he’d see any noticeable recovery. He needed the other hip replacing but this was put on hold until his symptoms improved.
By January 2017 – two years after the initial surgery – C’s foot drop was much better but he still had pain in the back of his hip and down his leg.
Twelve months later, he was examined again and the left leg remained the same with no improvement – C was told this was as good as it was going to get.
During that time, he’d had the other hip replaced successfully without any complications or pain.
Litigation
In the legal pleadings known as Particulars of Claim, C alleged that there had been a failure to conduct correct post-operative checks for haematoma despite the neurological changes in his condition. This delay and lack of treatment caused the foot drop due to the blood clot pressing on the sciatic nerve around his hip. The foot drop is a nerve injury, which is now permanent, limiting C in his day-to-day activities.
The case was going to trial in January 2022, but settled in December 2021 for £455,000 which included £60,000 in general damages and £395,000 in special damages. This was broken down into £25,000 for past financial losses such as care and travel costs, specialist footwear and mobility aids, and £370,000 for future financial losses like care costs, orthotics, pain management, occupational therapy, home and car adaptations, and home and garden maintenance.
