Mother finds epidural needle in spine 14 years after giving birth

'It's outrageous'

A mother in Jacksonville, Florida has discovered part of a broken epidural needle in her spine 14 years after giving birth.

After enduring years of severe back pain, Amy Bright, 41, underwent a CT scan in 2017 which revealed that three centimetres of the needle was embedded into her spine.

According to Bright, the needle is touching the nerve connected to her left leg, leaving her concerned that she could be left paralysed were the needle to move at all.

Doctors have informed the mother-of-six that because of the needle’s location, it will be too risky to remove, leaving Bright with no choice other than to live with it inside of her and treat the pain with medication.

Bright’s attorney, Sean Cronin, who has dealt with numerous medical malpractice cases, has said that this case is particularly rare.

“This is literally in the spinal canal,” he said in a press conference.

“Never seen it. Never heard of it. It's outrageous."

Bright gave birth to her son Jacob in 2003 at Naval Hospital in Jacksonville and began experiencing severe back pain just two months later.

She believes the needle broke off while the epidural was being administered when she was under anaesthesia and got “trapped”, claiming that medical staff must’ve known about the error and not informed her.

“They knew this was in her, according to our experts,” Cronin told People, “because so much of the needle was missing. And the safety tip is still in her.”

Bright and Cronin have accused the hospital of fraud and malpractice and plan to file a lawsuit later this year.

Bright added that the revelation has left her fearing for her future, as she is unsure how living with the needle inside of her will continue to impact her physical wellbeing as time goes on.

“It has gotten to the point where it just burns constantly,” she said.

“I’m probably going to be in a wheelchair. It’s scary because I don’t know.”

Naval Hospital have not yet responded to requests for comments, directing People to the US Department of Justice who have declined to comment on the issue.