What problems can there be from having a Surgical Drill bit left embedded in my bone

Question

I recently fractured my ankle in 3 places and had to have surgery to have screws and plates put in, during the operation the surgeon left a broken drill bit embedded in the bone.

Answer 1

No problems, its a surgical drill bit, if its drilled into the bone and its stuck in there you dont have to worry, nothing will happen, its like banging a nail into a piece of wood, it will just stay there forever,  

Answer 2

Hi There

From a nursing perspective, as long as the drill bit is not left protruding from the bone you aren't likely to have any problems. It is essentially just a really expensive s***w. Had they removed the drill bit they would have just had to put a s***w in, in its place.

However in saying that some people do notice some long term discomfort from surgical hardware particularly during extremes of temperature. If you have any significant discomfort sometimes the hardware can be removed at a later date after all the bones have fully healed.