Hernia repair is among the most common general surgical procedures, and although serious complications are infrequent, they generate a recognizable line of malpractice claims. Recurring allegations include injury to bowel, bladder, blood vessels, or nerves during the repair, failure to recognize and manage a complication in the post-operative period, mesh-related complications, and recurrence said to result from a technically deficient repair.
The standard of care is established through expert evidence from general surgery and is assessed against the operative decisions and findings as they were at the time. Causation frequently turns on whether a recognized complication reflects a departure from the standard of care or an inherent risk of a properly performed procedure, since some adverse outcomes can occur without negligence.
Posts tagged Hernia Repair analyze Ontario decisions involving complications of hernia surgery and the line between negligence and the inherent risks of the procedure.
In Forget v Gibb, 2026 ONSC 626, the Ontario court dismissed a surgical negligence claim and delivered a sharp critique of the plaintiff’s expert.
A surgeon was found liable for failing to disclose laparoscopic hernia repair as an alternative, even though the open repair he performed met the standard of care.
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