"Saphenous Nerve Damage during a routine Varicose Vein operation "

Although this operation happened 2003 and is out of the site remit, his condition is on going as is treatment for it so I would like to tell my husband story as he is still suffering from the effects of a routine operation and will do so all his life, he is now registered disabled and will be on pain management and medication for the rest of his life. Also sites like this did not exist then.

In July 2003 my husband had a routine VV operation on his left leg within a few days he realised that something was wrong, he had a burning sensation, numbness and pins & needles, he tried contacting the consultant, then he went to see his GP, The advice that he got was that it would go away, when he got to see his consultant, the consultant ordered an MRI scan stating that it was a sciatic problem, the MIR scan took 9 months to organise with my husband ringing the hospital weekly to find out what was happening, it transpired that the consultant’s secretary had taken patients notes home and had since left the hospital, the MRI scan proved that my husband did not have sciatic damage. My husband was depressed in constant pain worried about his job and the financial situation that this had left us in. In 2005 my husband was passed to another consultant who ordered tests to be done one of which was the radio active Isotope which involved sticking needles in-between my husband toes, this led to a diagnosis that his saphenous nerve had been damaged in 4 different places.

We made a complaint took it right through to health care ombudsman, but got no justice for my husband. PALS did not help and we felt like they were more concerned with the hospital and protecting the consultant, the health care commission actually suggested that it was my husband job as he was a long distant lorry driver which was not true he was a manager at a local business, blamed his weight, anything but the surgeons fault. He lost his job in 2005 and has not worked since. He now walks with 2 crutches, has to wear support stocks he is under pain management and the lymphoedema clinic on morphine patches and various other drugs for the pain, he has had 5 acute episodes of oedema and is now on a maintenance penicillin of 1000 mg a day.

This operation has ruined our lives for my husband was a fit and active person who loved his job and loved life, to now where he is in constant pain and his condition is getting worse neither the pain management, Lymphoedema nor his GP know quite what to do for him and it is just trail and error. He has asked his GP if removing his left leg would take away the pain but the GP could not guarantee that he would not be in pain A lot of the time it feels that he has been forgotten and everything that we have learnt about this injury I have found out on the internet. For me I am my husband carer I do a full time job and a part-time job to keep the finances in order, try to do the garden which we used to do together and look after the house. If we could turn back time I would advise my husband not to have it done or have laser surgery.

This operation has changed our lives and not for the better. If anybody is going to have a VV operation and you have numbness pins & needles and a burning sensation do not be fobbed off by the hospital. I would not like anybody else to suffer like my husband in constant pain.