[Missed and iatrogenic nerve lesions in surgery]

Missed and iatrogenic nerve lesions are not encountered very often. Nevertheless, they represent an increasingly important subject because of their implications for the patient and the physician and their legal aspects. We present an overview of the patients with missed or iatrogenic nerve lesion treated at the Division for Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery of the Inselspital in Berne from 1980 to 1989. After a look at the legal aspects a few typical lesions and their treatments are illustrated. The diagnosis of a missed or iatrogenic nerve lesion differs in no way from that in other nerve lesions. Therefore, we favor an early surgical revision in all cases where the possibility of a transsected nerve must be suspected postoperatively.