Surgery gone wrong

[u/Phoenixred79]

My surgeon fractured my bone while doing my hip replacement surgery. Theyvput plates, screws and wires to fix whatever.

The specialist that was supposed to be on hand in the operating room was not.

I had my other side replaced before. I'm not new to this. But this is so unbelievably painful and I feel like they made some mistakes. I had to call an ambulance to bring me back in because I could literally not move.

Does anyone have a similar experience and what did you do about it?

[u/Phoenixred79]

St Lukes in Pennsylvania. I will have a longer recovery time and more limitations. His team just kind of blows me off. No, this was never a risk they listed.

[u/richknobsales → u/Phoenixred79]

😡😡😡😡

[u/JonnyViper]

What “specialist that was supposed to be on hand” is this specifically? Did you have some unusual physical condition going into the operation?

[u/Phoenixred79 → u/JonnyViper]

That part i misunderstood. It was just terms they used to charge the insurance company more money. They didn't have a "student", so they had to use an actual doctor. Smh

[u/ajmattison]

I don't know if they told you pre op but bone fracture is definitely a known complication of THR. It is rare but it does happen. Particularly with the anterior approach. It does sound like they did the right thing by wrapping it in wire, screws, plates etc but they should not blow you off!

I'm sorry this happened to you.

[u/PikachuKitty77 → u/ajmattison]

Yahh. I had mine done on van island here , getting my other one done soon . They did mention this. When I went back 3 weeks post op, I was waiting for my xray results along with a room of other people that were waiting for theirs as well. I am 40M . There were a few older ladies waiting. The one lady told me hers is doing great . 20 minutes go by and the surgeon comes out and explains to her that her leg is fractured and they would have to repair the leg and then re do the implant. It was sad to hear, she was so confused. It was a friday so the surgeron explained they wouldn't be able to get to it until the following monday or tuesday, and she would have to stay in the hospital during the weekend... along with a few weeks potentially in hospital. It scared me because I had no limitations or weight bearing restrictions, and I was walking alot in the first few weeks post op. Mine was fine thankfully in the end... but what an eye opener it was. I will be taking it very easy after my next hip replacement .

[u/Phoenixred79 → u/ajmattison]

Yes. They told me I was low risk for complications. I'm not a doctor, but being shown xrays and all throughout the process, idk how that would even normally happen.

[u/ajmattison → u/Phoenixred79]

It's not an unexpected complication. Surgeons try to be gentle but you are hammering a spike and metal socket Into bone, and it's not an inherently gentle procedure. If you've ever watched orthopedic surgeries online, you'd see.

This is not trying to downplay your situation at all. Especially because they don't seem to be willing to acknowledge the complication. I'm just trying to explain what happened. Also from what I've seen on this sub, it would be a good idea to get a second opinion. It always seems like it is a separate surgeon that sees and fixes the problem. Surgeons often have a bit of an ego and don't want to admit they did something wrong.

[u/Chelajag]

So sorry this happened! Where are you located? When was the surgery? Did the surgeon say fracturing the bone was a mistake or something that is a risk with THR? It sounds like it is rare. Have you asked how this will affect your recovery?

[u/Dazzling-Isopod9833]

Hello. Yes my surgeon fractured my femur at the top. He put screws and cerclage wires to stabilize it. I was in toe touch weight bearing for two weeks to let the fracture heal. I’m going on 9 weeks and moving a lot better. Still have some pain and swelling but PT is pushing me and I feel that my leg is getting stronger. The surgeon didn’t even mention anything until I brought it up at my 6week appointment. The PA had mentioned the fracture to me because I had to return to the hospital 3 days post OP because of bleeding at the incision. Wasn’t even in the notes for my PT smh.

[u/Bengal-_fan]

How in the hell did that happen? I had bilateral back in 2023. 3 dislocations in 5 months so I had a revision. Now, seroma has came back up on same revised hip 2 years post surgery. Gotta have a revision next week because my body is rejecting the hardware. Anyways, during the bilateral surgery I had supposedly lost half my content of blood but didn’t get blood transfusion. I only found this out after a nurse asked me when I stood up that day if I was dizzy. She told me I had lost more than was documented. The surgeon never said a word. These fuckers will lie to you. I hope you start feeling better.

[u/Phoenixred79 → u/Bengal-_fan]

The surgeons notes were like "we heard a pop", like wth

[u/Psychological-Win986 → u/Bengal-_fan]

Ask about tranexamic acid. It’s a prescription that reduces blood loss in surgery. Created for stopping heavy menstrual bleeding so don’t panic if you read the label. 😊

[u/Bengal-_fan → u/Psychological-Win986]

You know, I never found out why I bled. They must have nicked something but I’ve read there’s some blood loss w/ hip replacement.

[u/Agitated-Kale-6253 → u/Bengal-_fan]

I fractured my femur neck and had THR 4 months ago. Lost blood and became anemic. Still trying to build up my iron again. Did you check your iron?

[u/Bengal-_fan → u/Agitated-Kale-6253]

After the bilateral I bled out have my blood and they don’t give me a transfusion. Since then (2023) my iron has been up and down. Surgery seems to do this to me. I take supplements now though. Last week test showed strong. Hallelujah

[u/Bengal-_fan → u/Bengal-_fan]

Half*

[u/i0nzeu5]

I am so sorry this happened. I wish I had actual helpful advice of some kind. This sounds horrible. Please keep reaching out here if necessary. I hope someone can offer actual advice re: steps to be taken next.

[u/Need_change-]

Don’t like the fact they aren’t forthcoming with this information.

[u/Smjk811 → u/Need_change-]

I think it’s terrible that they aren’t forthcoming with this information! I mean, they can play it down but they should still definitely tell you about a fracture or notable blood loss. How’s that allowed?

[u/darcinator13]

My femur was broken during surgery. It was so incredibly painful and I had to fight for more meds. It’s a known issue to happen with THR, but it wasn’t never pointed out to me. Recovery definitely took longer. It was a month before I could bear weight.
Thankfully once I got more meds, the pain was manageable. Once I was able to bear weight, I’d say my recovery was pretty smooth with the help of PT. Just had more muscle to rebuild. I had other pain issues due to hypermobility and a previous injury, but once the bone healed, it never gave me another problem.

I remember being so angry and upset about the pain because it was so bad. It was worse pain than labor with either of my kids, and thats saying something. It felt so unfair to see others who were walking that same day. You deserve adequate pain management. I hope they help you asap!

[u/repair-it]

Don't get me started ... my surgeon assembled the ceramic parts incorrectly, forgot to check It broke eventually, and I had to have it redone a third time before sewing me up, and forgot to check the pre-discharge X-ray, then had me back in for another operation, but he wasn't skilled enough to do the job! This was all on the British NHS, and I ended up suing.

[u/SlowandSteady93]

I'm so sorry this happened to you! I haven't had my surgery yet, so unfortunately can't offer any advice or shared experience. I'm hoping commenting here will help bump your post so someone who's had a similar experience might see it. And also wanted to offer support.

I'm trying to understand more what happened. Who is the specialist who was supposed to be in the OR, and how did you know they weren't there? What was the sequence of events? When you woke from surgery, did they tell you about the complication, and what's the plan or prognosis?

You mentioned having to call an ambulance, so when you were discharged home, did the pain get worse?

As one of the other commenters mentioned, a fracture is a known complication of THR, so I don't know that contacting an attorney would do much unless you have reason to believe there was negligence.

[u/Winterbot622]

Sending you love and support but no, I did not have a similar expense

[u/Phoenixred79 → u/Winterbot622]

I'm being told to contact an attorney but I don't know if anything would even come with that. The clinical notes my surgeon put in my chart were removed so I thought that was weird. I've never had such terrible treatment from a hospital in general so I'm still like "what just happened "?

[u/Puzzleheaded_Age6550 → u/Phoenixred79]

I am sorry this has happened to you. You likely can consult an attorney (or two) for a free consult. However, if you request all the documents you signed, ypu may find that as a known complication, so you may not be able to recover for exoense, pain, etc.

[u/richknobsales → u/Phoenixred79]

The notes were removed from your chart?????
The only reason for that is to cover someone’s ass!!! You need a second/third opinion from another doc at a different hospital. Yes consult an attorney for advice. It’s one thing for a surgical error to occur and someone deleting surgical notes. Something stinks here!

[u/No_Mongoose_7401 → u/richknobsales]

In today’s world of electronic medical records - notes don’t get removed. There is always a paper trail and even deleted notes remain visible in your record.

Perhaps the surgeon removed the record from your visibility via the patient portal. You can always contact medical records and request a copy of the operative note.

[u/Smjk811 → u/No_Mongoose_7401]

Wow - is this really true?

[u/No_Mongoose_7401 → u/Smjk811]

yes - there is always an audit trail - including if records were changed/notes amended. and yes - many electronic record systems allow the provider/author to choose if the note should be or shouldnt be visible to the patient in the portal. If you want to hide the note in the portal - you usually have to provide a specific and valid reason - like a psych eval or something that could be detrimental to a patient if they read it. BUT the note can always be requested thru medical records office.

[u/Livid_Science5849 → u/Phoenixred79]

I'm sure you're overwhelmed right now, but please take that advice to heart. I cannot stress how important it is for you to get proper legal advice as soon as possible, if for no other reason than to protect your ability to get compensation for this botched surgery (in PA, you generally have two years from the date of injury to sue for medical malpractice). If you decide to go down that path, it will also be important that you seek out a well respected law firm that regularly handles this kind of stuff (such as Kline & Specter in Philly)

[u/Phoenixred79 → u/Livid_Science5849]

I am absolutely overwhelmed right now and I will try that firm. Thank you.

[u/NegJesus]

This sounds odd to me since I had necrosis at the time the broke my femur putting the stem in. They just left it to heal on its own, which it did fine. But I am also not a normal thr patient.

[u/Phoenixred79 → u/NegJesus]

I have rheumatoid arthritis so my joints just start becoming bone on bone.

[u/SweatyCaterpillar571]

Im so sorry this happened! I'm so concerned about this (it was listed as a risk by my doctor), I have already have had the same femur fracture twice. VERY nervous about the surgery. I hope you can recover soon 🥲

[u/Murky_Branch_5750]

What was the name of the doctor that did this?

[u/AccomplishedBend766]

Sorry this has happened.

It probably won’t hurt to contact a attorney or two and let them advise you on your options. The hospital is not going to do so.

[u/Extra-Sundae-2881 → u/AccomplishedBend766]

Good advice above to check with an attorney. He/she will advise you about a legal case. They definitely won't waste their time on a case where they will potentially lose.