[Injury to the median nerve after minimally invasive decompression: discrepancy between the surgical report and actual course of surgery].

A 72-year-old man suffering from carpal tunnel syndrome had undergone minimally invasive decompression by using a SafeGuard® Mini-Open Carpal Tunnel Release System. After the operation the patient presented with a paraesthesia in the median nerve distribution. Two months later an operative revision was performed in another hospital. A partial transection of the median nerve and an incomplete release was seen. The surgeon of the first operation stated that detailed informed consent including the risk of iatrogenic nerve injury had been obtained. Furthermore he referred to the operative report, which mentioned the accuracy of the procedure without any problems or complications during surgery. The Arbitration Board stated that the operative report could not exculpate the surgeon because the findings of the operative revision disagreed with the first operative report. The expert opinion declared that the lesion was a result of an inaccurate operative procedure as the surgeon was not able to demonstrate an anatomical variation of the median nerve.