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Chatterton v Gerson [1981] QB 432

A doctor operated on a painful post-operative scar, which had resulted from a hernia operation, but failed to fully relieve the pain. A second operation also failed to relieve the symptoms, but the patient also suffered loss of sensation in the right leg and foot and therefore, loss of mobility. The claim was not for negligence in the conduct of the surgery, but as a result of lack of information about the risks when gaining 'informed consent'. The plaintiff claimed that her consent was not valid, as she had not been warned of the risk of numbness as a side-effect.

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