[Nerve lesions after hip prosthesis implantation--fate or treatment error?].
BACKGROUND
Nerve lesions after hip arthroplasty are common complications which may imply the reproach of a treatment mistake. Thus, the decisive question to the expert runs: fate or treatment mistake?


METHODS
Retrospective analysis of all cases dealt with at the medical expert commission of the General Medical Council Nordrhein during 1977-1997 in respect of the damage mechanisms and expert judgments.


RESULTS
As long as diagnosis and therapy were set on time, nerve lesions after hip arthroplasty due to extension, pressure or placement of the leg were evaluated as fateful (81%). Delayed treatment as well as incorrect operation technique, -indication, or inadequate documentation were judged as a treatment mistake (19%).


CONCLUSIONS
Nerve lesions after hip arthroplasty cannot always be avoided and thus do not directly imply a treatment mistake. Immediate therapy and precise documentation are important to minimize the damage.
Orthopädische Universitäts- und Poliklinik Essen.
R T
RT
Müller
N
N
Schürmann
T
T
Lichtinger
D019644:Arthroplasty, Replacement, Hip; D005104:Expert Testimony / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D005858:Germany; D006801:Humans; D007866:Leg / Q000294:innervation; D008318:Malpractice / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D059348:Peripheral Nerve Injuries; D012307:Risk Factors
Nervenläsionen nach Hüftprothesenimplantation--Schicksal oder Behandlungsfehler?