Expertise – DHB Legal

Mr David Houlihan-Burne

BSc (Hons), MB BS (Hons), MRCS, FRCS (Orth)

Mr David Houlihan-Burne specialises in all aspects of knee surgery. He pioneered the Rapid Recovery Programme in the UK, an innovative patient-centred approach to hip and knee replacement surgery and is one of Europe’s foremost surgeons in the use of robotic knee replacement.

As a leading knee surgeon, with extensive qualifications and expertise in cutting-edge orthopaedic surgery, Mr Houlihan-Burne can deliver professional and precise medicolegal assessments in a timely manner and expert testimony.

He has full indemnity for medicolegal work with Incision Indemnity.

Expertise & specialisations:

Lower limb trauma surgery
Complex knee surgery
Sports knee surgery

INSTRUCT MR HOULIHAN-BURNE

MedicoLegal Expertise

For 20 years, I have been preparing personal injury, condition and prognosis reports and medical negligence work, for liability and causation, as a defence and claimant expert. My split is 50/50 defence/claimant.

I recently attended an Expert Witness training course in Report Writing for Expert Witnesses.

I have a particular expertise in knee injuries or medical negligence related to knee surgery, in line with my 20 years of clinical practice. These include:

Diagnosis of knee pathology
Consent for knee surgery
Traumatic injuries of the knee, and their treatment
Knee replacement surgery
ACL injuries and their treatment
Articular and meniscal cartilage injuries and their treatment
Intra-articular injection treatments for knee injuries

Leading Orthopaedic MedicoLegal Expert

Personal Injury

AREAS OF EXPERTISE

My specific area of expertise for personal injury litigation is in soft tissue injury and fractures around the knee joint, and lower limb trauma in general:

ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) injuries of the knee joint
PCL (posterior cruciate ligament) injuries of the knee joint
Collateral ligament injuries (MCL, medial collateral ligament and LCL, lateral collateral ligament) of the knee joint
Multiple ligament injuries of the knee
Meniscal injuries (cartilage injuries)

Fractures around the knee joint

patellar fractures
tibial plateau fractures (proximal tibial fractures)
distal femoral fractures

Extensor mechanism injuries

ruptures and injuries of the quadriceps tendon
ruptures and injuries of the patellar tendon

Post-surgical knee issues including fractures around knee replacements
Lower limb amputation – indications and litigation consequences of amputation

Clinical Negligence

AREAS OF EXPERTISE

My specific area of expertise for Clinical Negligence (Liability and Causation, Condition and Prognosis) is in matters related to the knee joint:

errors in diagnosis of knee problems
delays in diagnosis of knee problems
performance of surgery of the knee joint – specifically ACL reconstruction, PCL reconstruction, MCL / LCL and posterolateral corner surgery, tibial osteotomy meniscal surgery and fracture fixation surgery
lower limb osteotomy surgery
knee arthroplasty
indications for surgery of the knee joint
consent for surgery of the knee joint

Clinical conditions and entities which are my specific area of expertise are:

knee injury
meniscal injury and meniscal surgery
ACL (anterior cruciate ligament)
PCL (posterior cruciate ligament)
MCL (medial collateral ligament)
LCL (lateral collateral ligament) and posterolateral corner
meniscal injury and meniscal surgery
articular cartilage injury and articular cartilage surgery
patellar fractures
tibial plateau fractures
tibial fractures
distal femoral fractures
extensor mechanism problems (patellar tendon, quadriceps tendon)
children’s knee problems and injury (paediatric knee issues)

I can also provide Clinical Negligence reports (Liability) in my capacity as a general orthopaedic surgeon for:

lower limb fractures
complex regional pain syndrome
spinal injury

I am instructed by both Claimant and Defendants in matters of Clinical Negligence.

Professional CV

BIO

His surgical interests include knee cartilage and ligament injury treatment as well as knee arthritis, particularly in the younger patient. In 2013, Mr Houlihan-Burne was listed in Tatler magazine’s Doctors Guide.

A consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon since 2005, Mr Houlihan-Burne qualified from St Mary’s Hospital Medical School, Imperial College in 1995. His Orthopaedic training took place in London with specialist and fellowship training in knee and sports injury surgery at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital and the Jonathan Webb Clinic, Bristol.

He is a member of the British Orthopaedic Association and the British Association for Surgery of the Knee (BASK). Mr Houlihan-Burne has experience in all aspects of knee reconstructive surgery and is one of the UK and European lead surgeons in developing a rapid recovery protocol following hip and knee replacement surgery.

He is a European lecturer and teacher in the use of MAKO robotic knee replacement surgery.

APPOINTMENTS

2005-2015: Consultant in Orthopaedic Surgery, The Hillingdon and Mount Vernon Hospital, Middlesex
Current: Director 3 Rivers Clinic, Middlesex
Current: Consultant Knee Surgeon, Fortius Clinic, London

PUBLICATIONS, LECTURES & TEACHING

Has written and contributed to a number of publications in the field of knee surgery
Teaches and lectures on several national and international courses for trainee and established surgeons
Former clinical advisor to the Department of Health establishing new rehabilitation regimes for knee surgery patients

RESEARCH PUBLICATIONS

MEMBERSHIPS

British Association for Surgery to the Knee
British Orthopaedic Association
Royal College of Surgeons of England
Royal Society of Medicine
The Seddon Society
British Medical Association

ACADEMIC & EDITORIAL

Prior executive Member British Association for Surgery of the Knee
Prior Clinical lead, Enhanced Recovery Programme, NHS London
Advisor and lecturer for Institute of Innovation, Department of Health
Board Member for Biomet UK and European Rapid Recovery Advisory boards
Reviewer for The Knee Journal
Reviewer for Bone and Joint Journal