Retiree Russell Major suing Perth neurosurgeon after becoming wheelchair-bound from alleged botched surgery

A retiree has launched a lawsuit against a Perth neurosurgeon after an allegedly botched spinal surgery left him needing to use a wheelchair. Russell Major is suing St John of God Murdoch neurosurgeon, Soni Narula, over alleged medical negligence after he was left with an epidural haematoma — bleeding between the inside of the skull and the outer covering of the brain — and severe spinal cord compression. Mr Major’s lawyers alleged in District Court that the 75-year-old may have made a much better recovery if he was taken in for another surgery to fix the compression on his spine. Court documents, obtained by The West Australian, allege Mr Major started experiencing numbness in his feet and progressively worsening left-sided weakness after the surgery, on October 12, 2020. Results of a CT scan on October 14 were deemed to show a possible epidural haematoma and he reported having increased weakness on the left side of his body. The haematoma was confirmed by an MRI on October 15, which was resulting in compression of the spinal cord, the court documents claim. It’s alleged Dr Narula decided against further surgery to address the issue, causing Mr Major to suffer permanent damage due to the pressure on his spinal cord. Within six days of having the surgery Mr Major required specialist equipment and assistance from three people to stand. He was then transferred for neurosurgical rehabilitation at Fiona Stanley Hospital, where he remained for more than five months. By the time he was discharged, Mr Major had made enough progress to transfer himself from the bed to a wheelchair. The court documents allege that as a result of the failure to return Mr Major to the operating theatre, he suffered severe spinal cord compression. It is further alleged Dr Narula breached his duty of care and was negligent by performing a partial laminectomy rather than a complete laminectomy — a surgical incision into the backbone to obtain access to the spinal cord — to decompress Mr Major’s spinal cord. The court documents say as a result of Mr Major’s decline in health, he suffers with weakness in his left arm and leg, bladder and bowel dysfunction, nerve pain, and psychiatric sequelae — a mental illness arising from an injury. Avant Law, the firm representing Dr Narula, told The West it was inappropriate for the surgeon to comment at this stage.