South Carolina pays estate of patient who died following days in agony after surgeons left a blade inside him

During the procedure, a Thompson retractor blade ended up inside Fulcher’s abdomen, according to local outlet WCSC, which cited documents from a lawsuit.

Fulcher’s doctor allegedly failed to see or remove the blade and closed his abdominal cavity.

Operating room nurses counted all medical instruments before and after surgery and confirmed that no blades were missing.

But that assessment turned out not to be true.

Fulcher told his doctors a day after his procedure that he had pain in his abdomen, but they determined he was “doing well,” the lawsuit claimed.

The pain increased for several days until Fulcher’s oxygen saturation level dropped and his abdomen was distended, or swollen, according to the lawsuit.

X-rays were taken, and more than six hours after the blade was discovered, Fulcher was rushed to the operating room. Documents said that he was in septic shock by this time. The blade had perforated Fulcher’s colon, leading doctors to remove the dead part of it.

He then needed another procedure, as doctors were concerned about bowel ischemia, which is when blood flow to the intestines slows or stops. The surgery was done at Fulcher’s bedside since he was too unstable to be moved, the lawsuit claims. Doctors ended up removing what was left of his colon.

Fulcher died six days after his initial procedure from sepsis, colonic perforation and peritonitis, which is inflammation of the membrane that lines the abdomen.

The lawsuit claims MUSC was negligent, carless and reckless. Following Fulcher’s death, South Carolina’s insurance fund paid his estate $1 million.

The Independent has reached out to MUSC for comment.