Malpractice litigation after total hip arthroplasty: A legal 10-year database


Creative Commons License

SÖNMEZ M. M., Alpsoy M. Y., Özdemir E., Sevin A., KAYGUSUZ M. A.

Joint Diseases and Related Surgery, cilt.34, sa.2, ss.389-395, 2023 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus, TRDizin)

  • Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
  • Cilt numarası: 34 Sayı: 2
  • Basım Tarihi: 2023
  • Doi Numarası: 10.52312/jdrs.2023.1029
  • Dergi Adı: Joint Diseases and Related Surgery
  • Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus, TR DİZİN (ULAKBİM)
  • Sayfa Sayıları: ss.389-395
  • Anahtar Kelimeler: Arthroplasty, complications, hip, litigation, malpractice lawsuits
  • Açık Arşiv Koleksiyonu: AVESİS Açık Erişim Koleksiyonu
  • Sağlık Bilimleri Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet

Özet

Objectives: In this study, we aimed to identify the most frequently reported claims after total hip arthroplasty (THA) and the reasons put forward by the plaintiffs. Patients and methods: Between January 2011 and December 2020, data of a total of 74 cases (21 males, 53 females; mean age: 53.7±12.8 years; range, 29 to 83 years) obtained from the Turkish Forensic Medicine Institute were retrospectively analyzed. Claims for litigation, demographic data, data regarding the identity of the accused and the hospital setting were recorded. Results: The most common reason for lawsuits was death (n=15; 20.3%), followed by nerve injury (n=13; 17.6%), and eight patients had more than one complaint. According to the forensic medicine reports, malpractice was detected in 10 (12.5%) of the cases. Among the hospital types, only nerve injury made a significant difference among all complaint sources in different hospital settings (p=0.003). Conclusion: In our study, death was the most common reason for lawsuits regarding malpractice accusations after THA, which is different from medical malpractice allegations throughout the world.