Infection Following Hip Replacement

D had bilateral osteoarthritis of his hips. He underwent a hip replacement and was discharged from hospital following the hip replacement despite oozing coming from the wound. 

D ended up having to undergo drainage of the hip and made a very slow recovery also requiring treatment with antibiotics. Infection was diagnosed with D requiring revision surgery.

Expert evidence was obtained from an Orthopaedic Surgeon who was of the opinion that there was a failure to offer D a revision operation earlier and had that revision operation been performed and undertaken earlier he would have ended up in a better position with his mobility and would have been able to walk whereas following the surgery he had been left wheelchair bound. 

This was a difficult case to quantify because of D’s age and his pre-existing problems but eventually it was possible to secure an award of £100,000.00 for D.