Big payout after hospital blunder cost man his leg

Medical negligence at a West Yorkshire hospital led to a man losing his right leg in an amputation that should never have been necessary.

Bradford Royal Infirmary (BRI) has admitted liability and agreed a seven-figure compensation package with the man, who has not been named, after failing to appropriately resolve an infection which developed after routine knee replacement surgery.

The 52-year-old man, from Bradford, had initially undergone a right knee replacement in  2005 due to advanced osteoarthritis, a condition that affects  the joints, but the problems persisted.

His surgeon diagnosed that he had completely worn the knee joint and a second knee replacement operation was carried out in December 2006.

When the knee continued to swell and the man started to suffer from fainting and hot sweats, he attended BRI, was given antibiotics and sent home.

At a clinic appointment days later he was still in pain so he was given intravenous antibiotics and an arthroscopic washout of his right knee.

In the following months, his knee regularly gave way.

Despite wearing a knee brace, he was unable to walk or do  everyday tasks, forcing him to resign from his job as an HGV mechanic.

Abscesses developed on his knee and an operation to remove them took place in March 2009.