Retained Foreign Object of Drain After Debridement

Indiana Medical Malpractice Attorneys for Retained Foreign Object of Surgical Drain

All surgery carries some form of risk. However, when a patient thinks about surgical risks they don’t often think of physician and surgical team errors or surgical items being left inside of their bodies. Retained foreign objects or retained surgical bodies are the terms used to refer to any number of surgical tools and supplies that are forgotten or left inside of a patient’s body after surgery. These items could include surgical towels, sponges, clamps, screws, pins, scalpels, catheters, tubes, needles and a variety of other surgical instruments. Not surprisingly, retained surgical items can cause serious health outcomes for the patient including severe pain, infections, and even death.

Pressure Sore Debridement

Pressure ulcers or pressure sores are skin wounds that occur as a result of prolonged pressure on the skin. If left untreated these sores can become very serious and impact deep layers of skin and even muscle or bone. In order to promote healing of the wound, debridement may be necessary. Debridement is a surgical procedure to remove necrotic or dead tissue from a wound. Removal of dead tissue helps to encourage the growth of healthy skin tissue and alleviate infection.

Retained Foreign Object Medical Malpractice Claim

Our medical malpractice attorneys represented a patient whose case involved a plastic surgeon who performed a debridement with a myocutaneous flap of a buttock pressure injury, placing JP drains during the surgery.  The drains were removed after 2 weeks, but the patient had continued pain and a non-healing wound.  Five years later, a new physician performed an incision and debridement of the wound and found a 4 cm piece of drain remaining in the wound and significant scar tissue which had formed in the area.

Retained Surgical Drain Lawsuit

If you or someone you know was seriously injured due to a medical professional error of leaving a foreign object in your body after a surgery, contact us. Our medical malpractice attorneys have litigated cases against surgeons and hospital systems across the state of Indiana. There is no fee for your initial consultation and we do not collect fees until your claim is paid. Contact us now to discuss your legal rights and options.