Negligent Administration of Ophthalmic Anesthesia Causes Permanent Loss of Vision

Case Overview

This visual impairment case involves an elderly woman who suffered serious complications following a routine cataract surgery. The procedure, which entailed the placement of an intraocular lens implant, was performed on an outpatient basis. After the operation, the patient complained of blurry vision, pain, and headaches. In addition, the postoperative evaluation by the operating physician demonstrated a retinal detachment, and the patient was referred to a specialist. During the specialist’s examination, he discovered significant retinal scarring and attributed the cause to the placement of the anesthetic needle used during the patient’s cataract repair surgery. As a result of this scarring, the patient continues to experience reduced visual acuity in the affected eye.

Questions to the Anesthesiology expert and their responses

Do you routinely administer ophthalmic anesthesia to patients like the one described above?

I do not perform these routinely at my place of work (I was trained to do them but do not routinely perform them; although they are relatively easy and quick to perform). Frankly, it seems excessive to perform a retrobulbar block for cataract surgery, as in my experience the greatest majority of cataract surgery is done under local anesthesia with sedation (sedation with or without an anesthesiologist, or Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists supervised by anesthesiologists).

Have you ever had a patient develop the complications noted?

I have never had a complication like the one described.

About the expert

This extremely qualified expert earned his BA from Brown University and his MD from Baylor College of Medicine, where he also did an Internship in Internal Medicine. He then went on to complete his Residency in Anesthesia at Harvard Medical School. He is double-board certified in Internal Medicine and Anesthesiology and active in his field with memberships in organizations including the American Society of Anesthesiologists and the American Medical Association. His expertise is highlighted by his publications which include over ten books and book chapters. He is a former Associate Attending in Anesthesia at Cambridge Hospital, and is currently an Associate Professor of Anesthesia at a top tier academic medical institution.

E-002863

Specialties:

Anesthesiology