A story in The Telegraph earlier this week which questioned whether shoulder replacement surgery is worth the risk.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2019/02/20/shoulder-replacement-dangerous-previously-thought-may-not-worth/
It is alarming to see that the long term study published in the BMJ identified complex revision surgery was needed in up to 25% of certain patient groups. This further evidence is going to be of particular importance to any patient when making an informed decision.
All patients will need to consider the reason(s) why elective shoulder replacement surgery is recommended; this might be due to pain, restricted mobility or a combination of both. I am acting for a client who developed pain in both shoulders at the age of 48, but she still had a good range of movement. To complicate matters she developed premature arthritis due to a pre-existing condition. After seeing Professor Wallace at Nottingham City Hospital, he suggested that the timing was right for replacement shoulder surgery because her muscles were in a good condition and this should aid her recovery. She underwent a type of surgery called “Vaios anatomic total shoulder replacement” on the right side. Immediately thereafter she experienced a significant restriction of right shoulder movement with her right arm being stuck across her body. No improvement occurred and she lost most of the functional use of her right arm. Following x-rays and further review by Professor Wallace, a decision was made to perform revision surgery only 3 months after the original right shoulder replacement operation. The reason for this was not clearly explained to her. Sadly, the revision surgery did not result in any significant improvement. As a result she continues to remain significantly disabled and only has a very limited degree of movement in her dominant right arm and shoulder.
An independent surgical expert identified numerous negligent errors with my client’s medical treatment. This included inserting the wrong size prosthesis component and putting this in the wrong place, which resulted in overstuffing of the shoulder joint. She now requires further revision surgery to remove the current prosthesis and to implant a reverse polarity prosthesis; there are increased risks associated with any future surgery. The Defendant is yet to admit liability and therefore Court proceedings are in the process of being commenced.
It is clear that shoulder replacement surgery is complex and the best results are obtained by those surgeons who specialise in this area. If you think avoidable errors might have been made in your medical care, why not call/email Williamsons Solicitors to see if we can get some answers for you and help with any compensation claim.