Kin Shriner, 71, Opens up About ‘Botched’ Foot Surgery and Long Road to Recovery
The 'General Hospital' star said fellow soap alum John Stamos stepped in to help him find a new doctor
When General Hospital star Kin Shriner underwent foot surgery last year, he had no idea it was going to leave him unable to walk for six months. The 71-year-old actor, who most likely underwent the surgery to manage arthritis, shared the details in a video posted to X on June 30.
“A year ago tomorrow, I had some arrogant surgeon give me a subtalar fusion,” the actor explained in the video. “And he botched it. So for six months, I basically couldn’t walk.”
Luckily, Shriner was able to get a re-do surgery and is now on the mend. But how did the botched surgery happen in the first place? And what can you do to advocate for yourself if you’re not getting the medical care you need? We reached out to experts to find the answers to these questions and more below.
Woman's World Answers
Kin Shriner’s foot surgery update
The botched surgery Shriner experienced was subtalar fusion surgery, or a surgery to fuse the two bones of the subtalar joint located in the heel. Although Shriner, who played Scott Baldwin on the popular soap opera, did not reveal the reason for this surgery, it was most likely to manage severe arthritis pain, explains Jodi Schoenhaus, DPM, a podiatrist at the Foot, Ankle & Leg Vein Center in Boca Raton, FL.
“Subtalar fusion is recommended as the final measure when the joint pain becomes painful and arthritic,” Dr. Schoenhaus explains. “Patients who have decided to undergo this surgical reconstruction have already failed various forms of conservative care, including braces, injections, physical therapy and orthotics, and they still are in pain daily.”
Nearly 70 million Americans experience arthritis or other chronic joint pain, but less than a fifth of them will undergo surgery, largely thanks to a class of effective antirheumatic drugs known as DMARDs.
The fact that Shriner decided to get a fusion surgery indicates he was likely out of other options to manage his foot pain. And, of course, it was double bad luck that he had to undergo a “re-do surgery” to fix the first one. (Check out our top tips for relieving foot pain here.)
Kin Shriner’s recovery from ‘botched’ foot surgery
Luckily, the TV star eventually received a successful re-do surgery, thanks to a recommendation from fellow General Hospital alum John Stamos.
“John Stamos, my good pal, sent me over to his guy at Cedars Sinai,” Shriner shared on X. “He redid it. So I’m down here in old Fort Lauderdale rehabbing this foot, every day so that I can get mobile.”
As part of his recovery, Shriner—who also played Baldwin in the soap opera spin-off Port Charles—said he was spending more time at the gym. “I’m getting attendance records at this Powerhouse Gym,” he posted on X. “You gotta get it back. Something goes wrong, you fix it. Or you try to. Anyway, that’s what I’ve been up to.So stay tuned. I will be mobile soon. Very soon.”
Shriner also captioned the post, “News flash from Fla Scotty @GeneralHospital. Not just eating glazed donuts he working hard to fix foot and get back to Vespa and all other things !!!!!!”
Botched surgery: What are the odds?
It’s hard to pin down the exact likelihood of a surgery gone wrong. One study from 2012 estimated that serious surgical errors occur in the United States about 4,000 times per year, or nearly 11 times a day. But with 51.4 million surgeries performed annually, that’s an error rate of less than 0.01 percent.
“In my experience as a board-certified plastic surgeon, a surgery going ‘wrong’ in the catastrophic sense is incredibly rare, especially when patients are treated by a qualified, board-certified professional in an accredited surgical facility,” says Ari Hoschander, MD. “Serious outcomes like permanent nerve damage or needing additional surgeries are possible, but they are the rare exception when being treated by an experienced surgeon.”
Plus, an unsuccessful surgery doesn’t necessarily mean that your surgeon made a mistake. Some surgeries are simply less likely to succeed than others. Joint fusion procedures, for instance, fail to fuse up to 20 percent of the time.
“The largest risk that any fusion procedure presents is a nonunion, which occurs in up to 10 to 20 percent of cases,” Dr. Schoenhaus explains. “Other problems may be hardware complications, infection, irritation of nerves or malalignment when the bones fail to fuse. It’s not common, but possible.”
How to advocate for yourself
Even though the odds that you’ll experience a botched surgery are low, there are still steps you can (and should!) take to advocate for yourself throughout any medical procedure.
“The best patient is an informed patient who is not afraid to ask the hard questions,” says Dr. Hoschander. “I encourage patients to bring a notebook or have their phone out, ask about complication rates and request to see before and after photos of previous patients. Patients should also do their homework when vetting a surgeon. Choose a board-certified surgeon with experience in the specific procedure you are considering.”
What you do post-operation is just as important as what you do beforehand.
“After surgery, advocating for yourself means staying in close contact with your surgeon. Report anything that feels unusual and do not downplay symptoms,” Dr. Hoschander advises. “Follow all post-op instructions to the letter, and show up for follow-ups even if you feel fine.”
And above all, listen to your body. “I have seen patients catch small issues early because they trusted their gut and reached out,” says Dr. Hoschander. “It made a world of difference in their recovery.”
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