Surgery negligence claims

Our medical negligence solicitors specialise in general surgery negligence and have extensive experience in various general surgery claims.

General surgery refers to the following:

• bowel claims
• abdomen claims
• bile duct claims
• gut claims 
• gall bladder claims 
• colon claims 
• liver claims
• pancreas claims

General surgery can be performed as an emergency or as a scheduled operation. Negligence or medical accidents during general surgery can have devastating and sometimes fatal consequences.

The development of keyhole surgery (also known as laparoscopic surgery) has led to an increase in the number of general surgery claims.

Sometimes surgical instruments may accidentally be left inside a patient following such a procedure.

Our general surgery experience

We have extensive experience in dealing with general surgery claims. For example, we have acted for many clients who have suffered major abdominal injuries, including:

• a young woman where delay in diagnosing appendicitis rendered her infertile 
• an RAF pilot who suffered catastrophic brain damage following delay in treatment after his abdomen became rigid. He was awarded £4.81 million.

We also see many cases where patients have not been consented correctly for procedures or where their post-operative care is negligent, for example, failure to perform regular observation. 

We acted for Vera following a delay in performing a laparotomy after an initial procedure to remove her gallstones perforated her bile duct. Vera was left with life-changing injuries, and recovered £200,000 in compensation.

Medical negligence relating to surgery can have a devastating effect on patients and sometimes proves fatal. Keyhole surgery (laparoscopy) and cosmetic surgery are a common cause of medical injuries during surgery.

We have acted in a wide range of general surgery cases, where the most common medical accidents include:

• leaving surgical instruments in the body cavity
• accidentally severing vital blood vessels or nerves
• operating on the incorrect part of the body or the removal of healthy tissue or organs
• carrying out unnecessary surgery as a consequence of a misdiagnosis or confusion involving notes, x-rays or patients themselves
• leaving items in the patient's body after surgery; this can include sponges, swabs and surgical instruments