Q: 1TSR ,Arthritic shoulder. Imeddiate pain post surgery. Several calls to surgeon and was told it was frozen. Unable to
Xrays abductly. Ordered CAT scan took 2 months for scan and immediate call from Surgeons
assistant. Told Sub tend was completly detached. I went to another surgeon' and had a reversal shoulder surgery .
Surgeon found Irreparable atrophyed and nerve damaged to the sub tendon. To later to reattach. The first surgeon I feel Failed to follow up on my concerns of severe pain and lack of ROM abductly which was new to me . He I feel should of been more thorough and he then could of reattached my sub tendon . I did not see the actual surgeon till 6 months after surgery only his asst I am a 54 year old landscaper and he knew it was important to me to avoid tsr if possible . I believe he could of added some more sutures or possibly went in and reattached if he was a effective surgeon. I was in extreme pain for 6 months and so I went to Another surgeon got a second opinion and had to have reversal . Now the pain is gone except for normal post op recovery . But my career is over at 54.
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A:
I'm sorry to hear about what you've experienced, especially considering the impact on your career and daily life. It sounds like you may have grounds to pursue a medical malpractice claim based on what you’ve described. Here’s an overview of potential claims and steps you could consider.
Potential Legal Claims: Medical Malpractice
Failure to Diagnose or Follow Up: A core element of malpractice claims is proving that the treating physician failed to provide an appropriate standard of care. In your case, if your original surgeon did not thoroughly follow up on your complaints of severe pain and loss of range of motion, and if those signs should have prompted a closer examination, this could indicate negligence.
Delayed Diagnosis Leading to Irreparable Damage: If prompt imaging or follow-up had led to a timely diagnosis of the detached tendon, then a reattachment surgery might have been possible. The delay you experienced could have contributed to further tendon damage, muscle atrophy, and nerve impairment. This progression, caused by the delay, may support a claim if it can be shown that timely care could have prevented the damage.
Loss of Career and Future Earning Capacity: As a landscaper, shoulder function is critical to your job. Your inability to work in your field because of the failed initial surgery and subsequent limitations could support a claim for lost earning capacity, especially given that the irreversible damage and reversed shoulder replacement restrict your work options.
Suggested Actions
Request and Review All Medical Records: Obtain all records related to your original surgery, including any notes from calls, post-operative visits, imaging orders, and the final CAT scan. These can clarify what steps (or lack thereof) the first surgeon took in response to your reports of pain and limited movement.
Get a Medical Expert Opinion: A medical malpractice attorney can often work with orthopedic or shoulder surgery experts to review your case. A qualified medical expert can help assess whether the first surgeon deviated from standard care practices and, if so, whether timely intervention could have prevented or reduced the damage.
Consult a Medical Malpractice Attorney: Working with a medical malpractice attorney can help you assess the strength of your case. They can advise on applicable deadlines (statutes of limitations) and may pursue your case on a contingency basis, meaning you wouldn’t pay upfront.
Why Legal Support is Critical
Medical malpractice cases require showing that the surgeon’s actions directly caused your current limitations and that a reasonable standard of care was not met. An attorney can help secure the necessary expert testimony and manage the complex requirements involved in these cases.
Compensation for Damages
If successful, a malpractice claim could cover a range of damages, including:
Medical costs for the additional surgery and follow-up care
Compensation for lost earning capacity and income
Pain, suffering, and other non-economic damages resulting from the delayed treatment and permanent damage
Consulting an experienced medical malpractice attorney will help you understand your best course of action, especially given how significantly this has impacted your life and work.
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