Surgical Accidents & Medical Malpractice Lawyers in Pittsburgh
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Wrong-Site Surgery, Retained Objects, and Preventable Internal Trauma
At Lupetin & Unatin, we’ve spent decades holding surgeons and hospitals accountable for “never events” and technical errors. We’ve handled, settled, or tried to verdict cases ranging from wrong-site surgery to retained objects. If a preventable surgical accident altered your life, Pennsylvania law may entitle you to significant compensation.
Do I Have a Medical Malpractice Case?
Surgery is always a significant event, but patients have the right to expect that the medical team will follow basic safety protocols. When a surgeon, nurse, or hospital system deviates from the Standard of Care, the results can lead to life-altering physical and financial damage. A surgical accident is more than just a “bad outcome” or a known risk. To have a valid claim, we must prove the medical team was negligent—meaning their actions fell below the accepted standard of care. Whether it was a “Never Event” like a retained sponge or a technical error like a perforated bowel, Pennsylvania law provides a path for justice.
Four Requirements for a Medical Malpractice Claim
- Duty of Care: You were a patient at a facility (such as UPMC, AHN, or a local surgical center) where the surgeon owed you professional care.
- Breach of Standard: The team failed to follow safety protocols, such as a “Time Out” or a correct instrument count.
- Causation (Increased Risk of Harm): In PA, we prove the surgical error directly caused your injury or significantly worsened your medical prognosis.
- Damages: You suffered actual losses, such as additional surgeries, lost wages, permanent disability, or chronic pain.
Diagnostic “Red Flags” Checklist
- The “Never Event”: You woke up to find surgery was performed on the wrong side of your body or the wrong organ was removed.
- Retained Object Symptoms: Weeks after surgery, you experience unexplained pain, fever, or swelling at the incision site—often a sign of a forgotten sponge or instrument.
- Sudden Post-Op Crisis: Shortly after a “routine” procedure, you suffered a catastrophic drop in blood pressure or signs of sepsis, indicating a missed organ perforation.
- Unexplained Nerve Deficits: You emerged from surgery with a “drop foot,” paralysis, or numbness in a part of the body unrelated to the surgical site.
Commonly Occurring Surgical Accidents
Wrong-Site, Wrong-Patient, or Wrong-Procedure Surgery
Malpractice occurs when a surgeon operates on the wrong side (e.g., the left knee instead of the right), the wrong level of the spine, or even the wrong patient entirely. In Pennsylvania, these cases often highlight a breakdown in the “Universal Protocol,” where the surgical team fails to verify the patient’s identity or mark the surgical site clearly. Our firm is dedicated to holding hospitals accountable for these egregious failures that cause irreversible trauma and delay the treatment of the original condition.
Retained Surgical Items (Foreign Objects)
Despite mandatory “counting” protocols, items are still frequently left behind, causing abscesses, internal obstructions, and sepsis. In many cases, these objects aren’t discovered for months or years, leading to chronic pain and the need for additional invasive “retrieval” surgeries. In Pennsylvania, we use the “Discovery Rule” to ensure victims can still seek justice even if the retained object was not found immediately.
Internal Organ Perforation & Puncture
While a minor “nick” can happen, malpractice typically occurs when the surgeon fails to recognize and repair the injury before closing the patient. If a perforated bowel is missed, fecal matter leaks into the abdominal cavity, causing a severe infection known as peritonitis. Our attorneys focus on the “Failure to Diagnose” the injury intraoperatively, which is often the primary cause of septic shock and multi-organ failure.
Bile Duct & Gallbladder Injuries
A common surgical accident involves the surgeon accidentally clipping or severing the Common Bile Duct instead of the cystic duct. This error can cause bile to leak into the abdomen or back up into the liver, leading to jaundice, liver failure, and the need for complex reconstructive surgery. In Pennsylvania, we hold surgeons accountable for failing to properly identify the “Critical View of Safety” before making any permanent cuts or clips.
Nerve Damage & Surgical Trauma
This often manifests as “drop foot” after a hip replacement or vocal cord paralysis after thyroid surgery. While surgeons often label this a “risk of the procedure,” it is frequently the result of improper technique or a failure to use nerve monitoring equipment when indicated. We work with neurological experts to prove that the trauma was not an unavoidable risk, but a direct result of a deviation from the standard of care.
Post-Operative Internal Bleeding (Hemorrhage)
If a patient’s blood pressure drops and heart rate spikes in the recovery room (PACU), the medical team must act immediately to find the source of the bleed. Negligence occurs when a surgeon or nursing staff ignores these signs of “hemorrhagic shock,” allowing the patient to bleed out or suffer organ failure. Our firm is dedicated to helping families investigate the critical hours of post-operative monitoring where intervention could have saved a life.
Pennsylvania Legal Rules & Deadlines
In Pennsylvania, you generally have two years from the date of the surgery to file a claim. However, for surgical accidents like a retained foreign object, you may not discover the error for a long time.
The Discovery Rule pauses the two-year clock until the date you “reasonably” should have known that an injury occurred and that it was caused by medical error.
On February 18, 2026, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court confirmed that the expanded venue rules are now permanent.
Strategic Selection: We are no longer limited to filing suit in the county where the hospital is located. If the hospital system (such as UPMC or AHN) “regularly conducts business” in Pittsburgh, we can often file your case in Allegheny County, even if the surgery happened elsewhere. This allows us to access a jury pool that is experienced with complex medical testimony and high-stakes litigation.
Pennsylvania’s Medical Care Availability and Reduction of Error (MCARE) Act provides a vital layer of financial security for victims. Under MCARE, doctors are required to carry primary insurance, but the state-mandated MCARE Fund provides an additional layer of “excess” coverage. For catastrophic surgical accidents requiring lifelong care, MCARE ensures that the full value of a settlement or verdict is actually available to the family.
Within 60 days of filing a surgical malpractice lawsuit, Pennsylvania law requires a Certificate of Merit. This is a formal statement from your attorney confirming that a qualified medical expert (usually a surgeon in the same specialty) has reviewed the records and believes the care fell below professional standards. Our firm coordinates this review with leading surgical experts to ensure your case is built on a solid medical foundation from day one.
Case Study
This is the story of a proud Vietnam veteran from a suburb south of Pittsburgh, whose routine knee surgery turned into a nightmare due to a vascular surgeon’s refusal to come to the hospital during a critical emergency.
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Radial nerve injuries can occur during various surgical procedures, especially those involving the upper arm, elbow, and shoulder. Some common surgeries that pose a risk include orthopedic procedures, joint replacement surgery, trauma-related surgery, reconstructive surgery, and cosmetic procedures.
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Surgical procedures that involve the lower back, pelvis, hip, or leg pose a risk of damaging the sciatic nerve. Some such procedures include hip or knee replacement surgery, lumbar spine surgery, cesarean section and other pelvic surgeries, intramuscular injections improperly administered in the buttocks, and tumor removal surgery in the pelvic region.
Case Study
When a 44-year-old bank manager from Westmoreland County went in for a routine microdiscectomy to relieve back pain, she expected a quick recovery and a return to her quiet, private life. Instead, a catastrophic surgical error left her fighting for her life on the operating table.
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At Lupetin & Unatin, we have seen firsthand the devastating impact “Foot Drop” can have on your life. We have represented numerous clients who suffered foot drop following a variety of neurologic and orthopedic spine surgeries and procedures.
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Our attorneys have helped many women who suffered silently after having a hysterectomy, believing their symptoms were a normal part of recovery, only to discover that a surgical error had occurred and they were suffering from a ureter injury that ocuured during their procedure.
Recent Case Results
Our client, a husband and father in his mid-30s, was experiencing discomfort in his right arm due to a radiculopathy caused by a C5-C6 cervical disc herniation. Despite being generally healthy and physically fit, he sought the advice of a neurosurgeon. The neurosurgeon recommended surgery involving a C5-C6 discectomy with artificial disc replacement. Unfortunately, during the procedure, the neurosurgeon made an error and inserted the artificial disc device beyond the intended level of the vertebral bones in the spine. As a result of this mistake, our client’s spinal cord was crushed by the device, leading to irreversible injury and paralysis from the neck down.
Following the incident, our client underwent rigorous physical and occupational therapy over the course of a year, hoping to regain some of his preoperative functioning. Although he made considerable improvements, he remains confined to a wheelchair with significant physical deficits. Understanding the severity of the situation, the attorneys at Lupetin & Unatin collaborated with esteemed medical experts to establish a case of malpractice. The evidence overwhelmingly supported our client’s claim, resulting in a substantial settlement that will provide ongoing support for him and his family throughout their lives.
Our firm successfully secured a $5 million settlement for the family of a man who died from complications following a series of surgeries for acid reflux. The initial procedure involved implanting a LINX reflux management device, but surgeons failed to perform it correctly. This led to complications that required additional surgery, during which the patient’s lymphatic system was injured. This injury caused a persistent and unmanaged chyle leak, which ultimately led to a catastrophic aortic injury during a subsequent operation. Despite multiple attempts to repair the damage, the patient died from these surgical errors.
We argued that the medical providers were negligent for failing to properly perform the initial surgery, delaying or avoiding unnecessary repeat operations, failing to recognize and treat the chyle leak, and failing to prevent the aortic injury. This settlement represents our commitment to holding healthcare providers accountable and achieving justice for families who suffer devastating losses due to medical negligence.
A Pennsylvania vascular surgeon negligently delayed surgical treatment of a man suffering from critical limb ischemia. Due to the negligent delay, the man suffered an above the knee amputation. The original offer before trial was $125,000. This was one of the largest verdicts in the history of Indiana County, Pennsylvania. This case was worked up by Greg Unatin, and tried to verdict by Greg Unatin, Brendan Lupetin, and Garrett Trettel.
Our client in this case was a woman injured by a botched gallbladder removal surgery . The defendant never offered any money to settle this claim before trial.
Denise Westwood received a $2 million medical malpractice verdict after suffering a bile duct injury during a botched gallbladder surgery. Dr. Charles N. Lebovitz was ordered by a jury to compensate Denise Westwood for the problems she experienced following the surgery. The injury resulted in permanent damage to her biliary system and liver, causing multiple hernias and requiring additional corrective surgeries. Westwood lost her job as a nurse’s aide due to the resulting injuries, which limited her ability to lift heavy objects. The lawsuit claimed that Dr. Lebovitz failed to follow proper medical procedures and took shortcuts during the surgery. The jury found him negligent and awarded Westwood $750,000 for past damages and $1.25 million for future losses.
Frequently Asked Questions
Not necessarily. A “nick” or minor perforation can be an inherent risk of some surgeries. However, it becomes malpractice if the surgeon fails to recognize the injury during the procedure or fails to properly monitor the patient post-operatively for signs of internal leaking or infection. The “Failure to Diagnose” the error is often the most critical part of the claim.
Yes. A consent form acknowledges the natural risks of surgery, but it does not give the surgeon permission to be negligent. You never “consent” to a surgeon leaving a tool in your body, operating on the wrong site, or failing to follow standard safety protocols. If a provider’s error caused your harm, the consent form is not a defense against a malpractice claim.
These are often the most straightforward cases to prove because of the “Res Ipsa Loquitur” doctrine, which means “the thing speaks for itself.” A sponge or needle does not end up inside a patient without someone being negligent. We use imaging (X-rays/CT scans) and the hospital’s own “instrument count” logs to show where the protocol failed.
In many cases, the “Lead Surgeon” is responsible under the “Captain of the Ship” doctrine, but the hospital and other staff (like nurses or assistants) can also be held liable for their own roles in the error. In Pennsylvania, we name all potentially negligent parties to ensure that the MCARE fund and all insurance layers are available for your recovery.
A “bad back” after surgery isn’t always malpractice, but specific errors during spinal procedures are actionable. Negligence often involves a surgeon placing a pedicle screw into a nerve root instead of the bone, failing to diagnose a post-operative spinal hematoma (blood clot) that causes paralysis, or performing surgery at the wrong level of the spine. In Pennsylvania, we also investigate cases where a surgeon insisted on a complex fusion when a less invasive procedure was indicated, or failed to monitor the patient’s neurological status during the operation. We use the “Increased Risk of Harm” standard to prove that the surgeon’s technical error deprived you of the chance for a successful recovery.
Bariatric surgeries are high-risk, and surgeons must provide rigorous post-operative monitoring. A legal claim typically arises when a surgeon fails to recognize a “leak” at the surgical site where the stomach was reattached. If a patient shows signs of a leak—such as a rapid heart rate, abdominal pain, or fever—and the medical team fails to order a STAT imaging study or return the patient to surgery, the delay can lead to catastrophic sepsis. In Pennsylvania, we hold bariatric centers accountable for failing to follow strict “leak protocols” and for providing inadequate nutritional follow-up that results in permanent neurological damage or organ failure.