We acted on behalf of Mrs J who suffered with an oesophageal perforation following a laparoscopic gastrectomy at a Hospital Trust.
Mrs J was discharged from hospital two days following surgery with a diet plan based on the post-bariatric surgery protocol. She returned to the hospital one week following her discharge to have staples (placed during surgery) removed.
By this stage she was already experiencing some symptoms of an oesophageal leak and infection, but the leak remained undiagnosed. She had a stinging sensation away from the stapled area and had developed a cough and was unable to keep food down.
She was prescribed antibiotics, but her symptoms worsened over the next few weeks and she reported excessive saliva and brown mucous forming in her mouth. She was unable to keep meals down and her chest was very painful. She was unable to tolerate solid food at all.
Unfortunately, by four months post-surgery, Mrs J began vomiting bile. She also had a high temperature which was indicative of infection. A CT scan was performed, and she was diagnosed with having fluid debris on her lung and a lesion (which was thought most likely to be abscess that had developed following surgery).
Mrs J developed sepsis and she was treated for this with intravenous antibiotics. She underwent an endoscopic examination to investigate the lesion, and this revealed a leak near the gastro-oesophageal junction. Mrs J had to undergo oesophageal stenting. She remained on long term antibiotics and suffered ongoing pain due to oesophageal stricture. She required repeated oesophageal dilation procedures (to widen the narrowed section of her oesophagus) and suffered severe pain.
We were instructed to pursue a claim for compensation against the Hospital Trust. Expert evidence was obtained which identified various breaches of duty of care owed but, importantly an intra-operative loop test was not performed during surgery. Had this have been performed, the leak would have been identified immediately and steps could have been taken to deal with this during the operation.
As a result of this failure, Mrs J suffered with physical symptoms for over 18 months and during this time she suffered a loss of earnings, and she was unable to return to work. Our client also developed PTSD (post-traumatic stress) disorder.
We managed to secure a 5-figure settlement for Mrs J which included compensation for pain and suffering, care, childcare (as she relied on others to look after her children), lost earnings but also for future psychological treatment.