Acute limb ischemia due to iliac thrombosis following laparoscopic surgery for hiatal hernia: Report from a medical malpractice litigation

Aim of this paper is to report an unusual case of iliac artery acute thrombosis following a laparoscopic elective surgery for hiatal hernia repair and observed during a medical malpractice litigation. A 69-year-old woman submitted to laparoscopic hiatal hernia repair developed a lower limb ischemia in 5th postoperative day due to common iliac and popliteal arteries acute occlusion. Patient was urgently treated with iliac embolectomy with Fogarty's catheter, and femoral endarterectomy, followed on 1st post-operative day by external iliac artery stenting and multiple attempts of popliteal artery recanalization. After 4 years of follow-up, despite symptoms at rest were disappeared, a severe (<200 m) right limb claudication was still present.