Cases involving poor outcomes following treatment of breaks and fractures are on the rise, in the experience of our medical negligence lawyers. It therefore came as no surprise to us that there has been another case involving a serious bone infection following a repair of a fractured fibula before the NSW Court of Appeal recently. We have prepared a summary of the Court’s decision below.
CASE STUDY: OLD V MINITER [2021] NSWCA 92
In May 2010, the appellant, Mr Brian Old, fractured his right fibula during a motorbike accident. The respondent, Dr Paul Miniter, an orthopaedic surgeon, performed the reconstruction surgery. Seven years later, Mr Old developed a bone infection (osteomyelitis) which he alleged resulted from a failure by Dr Miniter to remove surgical cords used to anchor the broken fibula and a plate inserted by Dr Miniter to Mr Old’s tibia. The infection caused severe pain and required a further operation.
The primary judge dismissed the claim, finding that although Dr Miniter had breached his duty of care by not removing the surgical components, this was not what caused the infection.
Mr Old appealed the primary judge’s decision. Dr Miniter also filed a notice of contention challenging the primary judge’s finding that he had breached his duty of care.
The appeal by Mr Old was dismissed by the NSW Court of Appeal. The judges found based on the orthopaedic expert evidence that it was not unreasonable for Dr Miniter to have left the surgical cords in situ, as trying to remove them once the broken bone had healed could have caused further complications. They did, however, consider that the expert evidence showed that the risk of infection would probably not have materialised but for the foreign material in Mr Old’s ankle.
The case clearly involved complex issues which required careful consideration of the expert evidence obtained by each party to the proceedings.
WE ARE YOUR TEAM FOR ORTHOPAEDIC INJURIES
The medical negligence lawyers at The Law Office of Conrad Curry have handled many cases involving surgical repairs of breaks and fractures which have resulted in poor outcomes, including chronic pain, infection and/or deformity. We have also worked on matters where the treatment of the injury pre-operatively and/or post-operatively has caused or contributed to similar complications.
If you or someone you know is concerned about the standard of care provided in relation to treatment of breaks and fractures, we would be pleased to discuss how we may be able to help on a no-win, no-fee basis. To make an appointment, please contact our friendly team on (02) 4050 0330 or book an appointment online.