Labiaplasty Gone Wrong
Should a woman want to undergo the restoration of her vulval anatomy to a more normal appearance, she may be recommended for a revision of the labia. This is called a labiaplasty and will help to even out of the labia.
Labiaplasty
During the patient's attendance at the clinic, the gynaecologist should describe the labial trimming both verbally and with a drawing demonstrating the described procedure. The risks must also be explained, such as wound breakdown which would leave ragged edges. The risks must be explained before the patient consents to surgery.
There are various surgical techniques that can be used during such surgery. Most commonly the surgeon will either trim the labia or perform a wedge resection, where a triangular piece of labia is removed from each side and the edges then sutured together. A patient must be told which technique is going to be used as each has significantly different risks, should the wound breakdown.
If a wedge resected labia breaks down it will result in a severe deformity as the edges separate. Should the wound from labial trimming breakdown, it will not result in any serious disfigurement but instead will usually result in bleeding and discomfort, which time will resolve.
Labiaplasty gone wrong – can I claim?
Unfortunately the restorative surgery can fail and the patient will be left with a significant defect in her labia. This will be deeply upsetting for the patient. But is there a case of medical negligence if a labiaplasty goes wrong?
To determine a breach of duty, one has to consider if alternative management would have resulted in a better outcome and whether no reasonably competent obstetrician would have deviated from that management.
Often the most important issues in such cases is the consent obtained and whether it was acceptable to use a different surgical technique to achieve the same intended result. This is in addition to the level of surgical skill involved and whether the surgeon performed the operation to a competent standard.
Failure to obtain consent
With regards to consent, there may be a case of negligence if the patient did not undergo the procedure she consented to, and was not informed of the difference in risks of wedge resection compared with labial trimming. Changing the surgical technique used without obtaining consent would represent care below that expected of a reasonably competent gynaecologist.
Poor surgical skill
With regards to surgical skill, there may be a case of negligence if the care provided fell below that expected of a reasonably competent gynaecologist. For example, blood gushing from the wound post-operatively would indicate poor attention to haemostasis, which would increase the risk of infection and bruising.
Talk to a solicitor
To find out if you can claim for a labiaplasty gone wrong, please get in touch with us today.
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