Malpractice litigation after total hip arthroplasty: A legal 10-year database

In this study, we aimed to identify the most frequently reported claims after total hip arthroplasty (THA) and the reasons put forward by the plaintiffs.

Between January 2011 and December 2020, data of a total of 74 cases (21 males, 53 females; mean age: 53.7±12.8 years; range, 29 to 83 years) obtained from the Turkish Forensic Medicine Institute were retrospectively analyzed. Claims for litigation, demographic data, data regarding the identity of the accused and the hospital setting were recorded.

The most common reason for lawsuits was death (n=15; 20.3%), followed by nerve injury (n=13; 17.6%), and eight patients had more than one complaint. According to the forensic medicine reports, malpractice was detected in 10 (12.5%) of the cases. Among the hospital types, only nerve injury made a significant difference among all complaint sources in different hospital settings (p=0.003).

In our study, death was the most common reason for lawsuits regarding malpractice accusations after THA, which is different from medical malpractice allegations throughout the world.