A defense verdict was recently received by partners Michael O. Pitt and Mary Kay Plyter-Eigner on behalf of an orthopedic surgeon in Bucks County. Plaintiff claimed that the surgical management of a spontaneous prosthetic joint infection was improper. Plaintiff’s experts argued that a resection arthroplasty or Girdlestone procedure should have been done as the initial management of a prosthetic joint infection despite the fact that the patient had less than 72 hours of symptoms. Defense experts offered testimony that defendant’s management of the condition with a DAIR (debridement and implant retention) was the standard of care and the remainder of the surgical treatment was successful in eradicating the infection. The jury found no negligence on the part of the orthopedic surgeon.
