Patient is Infected by Contaminated Surgical Equipment

Case Overview

This case takes place in New York and involves a female patient who presented to her primary care physician with what she believed to be an infection in a wound on her stomach. Her doctor examined the would, and prescribed a course of antibiotics with instructions to follow up in a week. Just a few days later, she presented to the hospital with pain and redness in and around the wound and was diagnosed with an antibiotic-resistant infection. The infection eventually spread to her artificial hip, which had been implanted after the patient received the wound on her stomach which became infected. It is alleged that bacteria from the infected would on her stomach was allowed to contaminate instruments used during her hip implant surgery. An equipment appraisal expert witness was sought to opine on the case.

Questions to the Infectious Disease and Communicable Disease expert and their responses

Have you treated patients with this particular infection in the past?

I have treated thousands of cases of this particular infection in a variety of different patient populations.

Is it possible that the bacteria in the wound could spread to and infect a hip replacement?

It is certainly possible for the infection to spread from the a wound similar to the one located to the patient's hip prosthesis, most likely via blood-borne spread (hematogenous).

Have you ever seen or reviewed a similar case in the past?

I have reviewed a similar case in the past. As a board certified Infectious Diseases specialist with clinical focus on drug-resistant bacteria, I am well qualified to review this case.

About the expert

This double board certified expert has been practicing for over 20 years. He completed his Infectious Disease fellowship at Cornell University as well as a research fellowship at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. Awarded the honor of Fellow of both the Infectious Diseases Society of America and the American College of Physicians, he holds membership in a multitude of other prestigious medical organizations and serves as a reviewer for over 40 medical journals. He is also extensively published with over 200 peer-reviewed journal articles, book chapters, and abstracts. Currently, this expert is an Associate Professor in the Department of Infectious Diseases at a major medical university, where he is also the Director of Transplant Infectious Diseases. His specific infectious disease experience includes tuberculosis, hepatitis, lyme disease, fungal infections, diseases of travel, infections in transplant recipients, bone and joint infections, and infections associated with targeted immunotherapy.