During a routine Hysterectomy my right ureter was damaged, not to be found until four days later. The day it was discovered I had emergency surgery to repair the ureter and re-implant it to a new location on my bladder. This surgery left a 6 inch scar from my belly button to the top of my pubic area. After several months I experienced pain in the lower right abdomen and was told I had scar tissue.
After months of pain I had another surgery to remove the scar tissue. The pain continued.
After several doctors and 2 more surgeries the pain continued even after a lot of the scar tissue and my right ovary were removed.
I have lived with this chronic pain and have not been able to work for 5 years and have been on pain medication that only dulled the pain. I cannot walk a block or ride a bike and can only stand for short periods of time.
I have recently moved to California and have a new gynecologist whom, upon examination, diagnosed me with nerve entrapment. I have since had surgery (2 weeks ago) to remove a portion of this nerve and seem to be doing well, but I am still recovering.
The doctor who originally did the hysterectomy denies all responsibility for the damage to the ureter and has had several other patients with similar cases. I am now aware that there was a device available to her at the time of the hysterectomy to prevent damage to the ureter and surrounding areas which she did not use. These past 5 years have been physically and mentally challenging and I feel wronged by this doctor.
I understand there is a statute of limitations that has likely expired, however, is there any options for pursuing justice? Can I still file a claim for medical malpractice? I want to prevent this from happening to other patients.
Answer:
Given that you only discovered the nerve entrapment recently, you may be able to claim that the injury, or wrongdoing was only discovered recently. If that can be established then the statutue of limitations likely will not begin until that date. In that case you will not be barred from bringing a claim for medical malpractice.
You should consider talking to a medical malpractice lawyer to find out the details of the time limit law in the state where the original surgery took place.
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Posted by Staff Writer on 28 Jan 2010