Injured by Improper Surgical Technique? Top NYC Malpractice Attorney

Surgery is inherently risky, even under ideal conditions, but when a surgeon employs improper technique or lacks the necessary skill, the risk of severe complications increases dramatically. In New York, poor surgical technique is a major cause of medical malpractice cases, with devastating consequences for patients.

The state’s elaborate medical system, including its numerous hospitals and clinics, unfortunately sees its share of surgical errors that stem from negligence, leading to life-altering injuries or even death. An experienced New York City surgical negligence attorney with an understanding the nuances of medical malpractice law in New York can help injured patients hold negligent surgeons and hospitals accountable for the largest possible damages.

What Constitutes Poor Surgical Technique?

Poor surgical technique refers to a range of errors or deficiencies in the execution of a surgical procedure that result in harm to the patient. It can manifest in various ways, including:

Failure to Follow Standard Procedures

Surgeons are required to strictly adhere to established medical protocols and surgical guidelines to ensure patient safety and optimal outcomes. These protocols include proper patient positioning, making precise and calculated incisions, and the correct placement of surgical instruments. Deviating from these standard procedures can lead to catastrophic consequences.

For example, an incision that is too deep or made at the wrong location can damage internal organs or major blood vessels. Moreover, failing to maintain a clear line of sight for critical anatomical structures can cause unintended injury to areas that should be avoided, prolonging recovery time or necessitating additional surgeries to repair the damage.

Injury to Adjacent Organs or Tissues

One of the most serious risks associated with poor surgical technique is inadvertent injury to nearby organs, blood vessels, or nerves. During complex surgeries, particularly in areas where critical structures are in close proximity (such as in abdominal or cardiovascular procedures), a surgeon must exercise extreme precision.

Accidental injury to adjacent organs, such as perforating the bowel during an appendectomy or puncturing a lung during a chest surgery, can lead to severe complications like internal bleeding, infection, or loss of organ function. In some cases, nerve damage caused by improper instrument handling can result in chronic pain or permanent disability.

Improper Use of Surgical Instruments

The proper use of surgical instruments requires skill, experience, and attention to detail. When a surgeon misuses instruments, such as applying too much force with clamps or suturing too tightly, it can cause significant harm to the patient. For instance, improper suturing can result in tissue ischemia (restricted blood flow), leading to necrosis or the reopening of wounds (wound dehiscence).

Overuse of forceps or retractors may cause tearing or crushing of soft tissues, which can lead to complications such as postoperative bleeding or severe scarring. Moreover, the failure to properly sterilize or use instruments correctly can introduce bacteria into the surgical field, increasing the risk of post-surgical infections.

Failure to Maintain a Sterile Environment

Maintaining sterility during surgery is essential to prevent potentially life-threatening infections. Surgeons, as well as their teams, must follow stringent aseptic techniques, which include sterilizing instruments, using sterile drapes, and adhering to hand hygiene protocols.

Poor surgical technique that compromises sterility, such as accidentally touching non-sterile surfaces or failing to clean wounds appropriately, can introduce harmful pathogens into the patient’s body. This may lead to infections like sepsis, a life-threatening systemic infection, or localized infections that can delay healing and require prolonged antibiotic treatment or further surgical intervention.

Inadequate Training or Experience

Surgeons must operate within their scope of expertise, particularly when dealing with high-risk or complex procedures. Errors due to inadequate training or experience occur when less-experienced surgeons perform operations beyond their skill set without proper supervision or guidance.

For instance, an inexperienced surgeon might struggle with intricate techniques required in microsurgery or fail to properly assess complications during an open-heart surgery. Lack of experience can manifest in prolonged surgery times, improper incisions, and increased risk of postoperative complications, which may require corrective surgeries.

Delayed or Incorrect Surgical Decisions

Intraoperative decision-making is critical, particularly when unexpected complications arise during surgery. Delayed or incorrect decisions can have severe consequences, especially in life-threatening situations. For example, failing to promptly address excessive bleeding or misjudging the severity of tissue damage can lead to complications like hemorrhaging, infection, or even death.

Surgeons must also know when to abort or modify a procedure when it becomes too risky to continue. Poor surgical technique includes hesitation or making faulty decisions during these critical moments, often exacerbating the patient's condition and leading to additional complications.

Incorrect Suture Techniques

Suturing is a vital skill in nearly all surgical procedures, and improper suturing can result in serious postoperative issues. Poor suturing technique, such as using incorrect tension, placing sutures too close together, or selecting the wrong suture material, can cause wounds to reopen (wound dehiscence) or excessive scarring.

In some cases, inadequate suture closure may allow bacteria to enter the surgical site, leading to infections. Improper suturing can also affect internal repairs, leading to leakage in gastrointestinal surgeries or failure of repairs in vascular surgeries, necessitating additional corrective procedures.

Failure to Control Bleeding

Hemostasis, or the control of bleeding during surgery, is one of the most critical aspects of surgical technique. Surgeons must use appropriate methods such as cauterization, ligation (tying off blood vessels), or the application of hemostatic agents to manage bleeding. Failing to properly control bleeding during surgery can result in significant blood loss, leading to hypovolemic shock, organ failure, or death.

Postoperative hemorrhaging may also occur if blood vessels are not adequately secured, necessitating emergency surgery or intensive medical care. Poor surgical technique in controlling bleeding not only increases the risk of death but can also result in extended recovery periods and additional medical costs.

Inadequate Preoperative Planning

Effective preoperative planning is essential to avoid surgical errors that stem from a lack of preparation. Surgeons must thoroughly review a patient’s medical history, imaging, and diagnostic test results to ensure they fully understand the patient's condition and the specifics of the surgery.

Poor preoperative planning can result in errors such as operating on the wrong body part, overlooking anatomical variations, or failing to anticipate complications like adhesions or scar tissue from previous surgeries. For instance, if a surgeon fails to review a patient’s imaging properly, they may make incorrect incisions or miss key structures, causing damage or extending surgery time unnecessarily.

Prolonged Surgery Time Due to Incompetence

Extended surgery times are associated with increased risks, such as infections, blood clots, and complications from anesthesia. Surgeons who lack the necessary skills or experience may prolong surgery by hesitating, making repeated attempts at critical steps, or failing to proceed efficiently.

Prolonged surgeries not only increase the physical strain on the patient but also elevate the chances of postoperative complications, including delayed healing, deep vein thrombosis (DVT), or pneumonia. Surgeons are expected to perform procedures competently and swiftly, ensuring patient safety while minimizing the time under anesthesia.

Common Examples of Surgical Errors Due to Poor Technique

In New York, some of the most common medical malpractice cases arise from surgical errors involving poor technique. These include:

• Nerve Damage: During surgeries, especially those involving the spine, limbs, or the head, a lack of precision can cause permanent nerve damage. This can result in chronic pain, loss of motor skills, or even paralysis.
• Performing the Wrong Surgery or on the Wrong Body Part: Mistakenly operating on the wrong body part or performing the wrong procedure is one of the most extreme forms of surgical negligence. This type of error can arise from miscommunication, poor preoperative planning, or lack of attention to detail, often resulting in severe harm to the patient and requiring further corrective surgery.
• Infection Due to Contaminated Instruments: Failing to properly sterilize surgical instruments or maintain a sterile environment can introduce harmful bacteria into the patient’s body, causing infections that may require additional surgeries or lead to long-term health issues.
• Bowel Perforation: In procedures involving the abdomen, such as appendectomies or gallbladder removal, a poorly skilled surgeon may accidentally puncture the intestines, leading to leakage of intestinal contents into the abdominal cavity and resulting in serious infections like peritonitis.
• Excessive or Improper Removal of Tissue: In certain surgeries, especially those related to cancer, removing the wrong amount of tissue—either too little or too much—can have severe consequences. Removing too much healthy tissue can lead to unnecessary damage, while not removing enough diseased tissue can lead to cancer recurrence.
• Foreign Objects Left Inside the Patient: Surgical sponges, instruments, or other materials can be left inside a patient due to negligence. This can lead to infection, additional surgeries, and, in severe cases, life-threatening complications.
• Damage to Blood Vessels: During surgery, especially in complex procedures near vital organs or large blood vessels, a surgeon’s improper technique can result in accidental lacerations or punctures to blood vessels. This can cause excessive bleeding, requiring immediate repair or additional surgeries, and can lead to life-threatening complications if not addressed promptly.
• Inadequate Closure of Surgical Site: Closing a surgical incision improperly, either by rushing the process or using incorrect techniques, can lead to serious complications. This may include wound infections, hernias, or the reopening of the incision (dehiscence), all of which can cause significant harm and require corrective surgery.

How Surgical Errors Due to Poor Technique Affect Patients

Surgical errors can lead to both immediate and long-term complications, significantly impacting a patient's quality of life. These complications can include:

• Infections: As a result of improper sterilization or tissue damage, infections can arise, potentially leading to sepsis, organ failure, or even death.
• Chronic Pain: Nerve damage or improper healing due to poor technique can cause lasting pain, sometimes requiring long-term pain management or additional surgeries.
• Extended Recovery Times: Patients may face prolonged hospital stays or rehabilitation, which can interfere with their ability to work, care for their families, and live their lives fully.
• Additional Surgeries: In some cases, patients require corrective surgeries to repair the damage caused by the initial poor technique, increasing medical expenses and recovery time.
• Emotional Trauma: The stress and trauma of enduring a failed surgery or life-altering complications can take a significant emotional toll on patients, leading to depression, anxiety, and diminished mental well-being.

Legal Consequences of Poor Surgical Technique in New York

When a patient is harmed due to poor surgical technique, they may have grounds for a medical malpractice claim. In New York, medical malpractice occurs when a healthcare professional fails to provide the standard of care that a reasonably skilled practitioner would have provided under similar circumstances, and this failure causes harm to the patient.

To prevail in a medical malpractice case involving surgical errors, the injured party must prove several key elements:

1. Duty of Care: The surgeon had a duty to provide competent care to the patient.
2. Breach of Duty: The surgeon breached that duty by failing to follow the standard of care, such as by employing poor technique.
3. Causation: The breach of duty directly caused harm to the patient. In other words, the injury would not have occurred if the surgeon had exercised proper care.
4. Damages: The patient suffered quantifiable damages, such as medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, or reduced quality of life.

Statute of Limitations in New York for Medical Malpractice

In New York, the statute of limitations for medical malpractice cases is generally two years and six months from the date of the malpractice. However, there are some exceptions:

• Foreign Objects: If a foreign object, such as a surgical tool, is left inside a patient’s body, the patient has one year from the date of discovery to file a lawsuit, regardless of when the surgery took place.
• Continuous Treatment Doctrine: If a patient continues to receive treatment from the surgeon for the condition related to the malpractice, the statute of limitations may be extended until the treatment ends.

Given the complexities of New York’s medical malpractice laws, it is crucial to consult with an experienced attorney as soon as possible if you believe you have been harmed by poor surgical technique.

Get the Leading Surgical Malpractice Attorneys in New York on Your Side

If you or a loved one has suffered harm due to surgical malpractice, the skilled attorneys at Rosenberg, Minc, Falkoff & Wolff, LLP are here to fight for the justice and compensation you deserve. Our firm, founded in 1920 by renowned trial attorney Gustave G. Rosenberg, has a legacy of success in securing significant recoveries for victims of medical negligence. We understand how devastating a surgical error can be, and we have the experience, knowledge, and dedication needed to hold negligent medical professionals accountable.

Our record of success speaks for itself, including $15 million jury award against a major Manhattan hospital, $15 million settlement in a neurosurgical brain injury case, and $10.5 million recovery for infant brain damage due to medical malpractice. Leading our team are experienced trial attorneys Peter Rosenberg and Daniel C. Minc, who have a proven track record of achieving multi-million dollar verdicts and settlements for clients.

Peter Rosenberg, a third-generation trial lawyer, has personally tried over one hundred cases, earning numerous multi-million-dollar awards. His tenacity in the courtroom and skill at negotiating favorable settlements have earned him the universal admiration of his clients. Daniel C. Minc, a Member and Partner at our firm, has secured over $500 million in verdicts and settlements for victims of medical malpractice, highlighted by a $15 million jury verdict against one of New York City’s largest hospitals.

If you or someone you love has been a victim of surgical malpractice, reach out to our trusted and experienced New York City surgical malpractice attorneys today. To schedule your free consultation, call us at 212-344-1000 or contact us online.