Medical malpractice suit in botched foot implant surgery

Degenerative diseases can leave Ann Arbor patients with significant, life-altering health issues. When the bones and joints are affected, mobility can be severely limited and pain may be constant.

This was the case with a patient in a nearby Midwestern state who sought treatment for pain associated with flat feet in 2007. He sought treatment from a local podiatrist and eventually underwent surgery for his condition. The surgeon implanted replacement joints in each of the patient’s feet.

Recently, however, the patient returned to the podiatrist because the implants had come loose and were causing pain. The surgeon removed them, but did not replace them with anything that would offer the patient stability in his feet and ankles. He was left with constant pain and impaired mobility.

In fact, as the patient later discovered, replacement surgery like this is generally discouraged for degenerative conditions like the kind for which he sought treatment in the first place. He has recently filed a medical malpractice suit against the podiatrist. Damages sought in the action are over $50,000.

A botched replacement surgery can lead to persistent pain, but it can also have effects that stretch beyond this. Victims may find that the original problem that they sought to correct has now been exacerbated, that they now have a worsened medical condition. They may even have incurred significant medical expenses for procedures to try to undo the damage of the original surgery. While a medical malpractice lawsuit cannot undo the damage victims experience, it can help them seek compensation for some of what they have lost.

Source: Cook County Record, “Patient accuses podiatrist of malpractice in foot surgery,” Robert Hadley, Jan. 7, 2016