Lawsuit after a surgeon left a needle inside a patient who later died

The family of a Tennessee man who died shortly after a surgeon left a needle inside his chest cavity has sued the hospital.

The Tennessean reports 73-year-old John Burns Johnson had open heart surgery at TriStar Centennial Hospital on May 2017.

After about nine hours of surgery, a surgeon closed his chest only to discover one of his needles was missing. An X-ray revealed it was inside Johnson. The surgeon then tried to retrieve the needle but was unsuccessful.

Johnson died about a month after the surgery. The lawsuit says Johnson's health deteriorated and described his death as "painful, unnecessary and wrongful."

The hospital released a statement saying it would not respond to the lawsuit's claims, but noted it is serious about caring for patients and empathises with the family.

- AP