Orthopaedics and medical negligence

In this context the term “orthopaedic” refers to injuries involving bones, muscles and joints of the human body. There are many different types of injury in this category which may include:

• Fractures – involving the break of the bone
• Dislocations – this occurs when the bone or joint moves out of alignment
• Sprains – soft tissue injuries and ligament damage around a joint

A doctor specialising in orthopaedics will often handle patients that have suffered bone fractures or who need joint replacement or ligament reconstruction surgery. The main areas in which an orthopaedic surgeon will specialise include: the hand, shoulder and elbow surgery, joint reconstruction, paediatric orthopaedics, foot and ankle surgery, spine surgery, musculoskeletal oncology, surgical sports medicine, and orthopaedic trauma.

Many of these operations are growing increasingly complex as medical practices are advancing and complicated yet minimally invasive surgical techniques become commonplace.

Thousands of people are treated successfully for orthopaedic health problems each year, however, errors and mistakes can and do happen. Mistakes made by doctors in the field of orthopaedics are unfortunately fairly commonplace. Most commonly there are failures to diagnose or adequately treat the injuries. This causes a deterioration and inevitably extends the recovery period required. This type of medical negligence claim is now two to three times more frequent than other kinds.

As with any area of medicine, errors can be made during the diagnosis, treatment or prognosis of an illness, or any combination of the three. Some of the most common reasons for orthopaedic negligence claims include:

• Inaccurate or late diagnosis
• Failure to take tests or misinterpretation of test results
• Poor treatment of fractures
• Poor operative technique
• Damage to nerves or circulation during medical procedures
• Inadequate cleaning and dressing of wounds or infection
• Claiming medical negligence compensation

The Public Accounts Committee have found that medical negligence affects one out of ten NHS patients. It is therefore clear that there are many people in the UK who may well be entitled to compensation. If you feel that you have experienced medical negligence then contact on of our personal injury lawyers.