Total Hip Arthroplasty and Lumbar Neuromodulation Following Motor Vehicle Trauma

In this personal injury case, the plaintiff was rear-ended at a red light by a semi-truck. The truck driver reported being under the influence at the time of the collision.
The force of the impact caused significant injuries to the client’s left hip and lumbar spine, ultimately requiring extensive surgical intervention. To communicate the true severity of the injuries and the complexity of treatment, the legal team needed clear, compelling surgical visuals that a jury could easily understand.

Case Overview

	Case Type - Personal injury case, Surgical animations
	Visual Type - Multiple Surgical Animations, Colorized Film
	Results - $20 million dollar settlement

Challenge

Total hip arthroplasty and spinal cord stimulator implantation are complex, multi-step procedures involving detailed anatomy, precise surgical technique, and implanted hardware. Operative reports are written for clinicians and rely heavily on technical terminology, making them difficult for a lay audience to fully grasp.

In a litigation setting, lengthy step-by-step explanations can overwhelm decision-makers, causing critical moments — such as bone preparation, prosthetic placement, or spinal lead positioning — to lose clarity. Additionally, spinal cord stimulation introduces abstract concepts like neuromodulation, which are inherently difficult to visualize without guided illustration.

The challenge was to preserve medical accuracy and procedural gravity while transforming dense surgical detail into a clear, structured, and visually intuitive narrative.

Visual Strategy

To effectively communicate the complexity of the procedures, we developed a story-driven visual framework focused on clarity and structure without diminishing accuracy.

The procedure was broken down into short, focused visual segments. Each segment addressed one key concept at a time — avoiding information overload and building understanding piece by piece.

Unnecessary anatomy was ghosted or removed to eliminate visual clutter. This allowed viewers to focus only on the structures relevant to the injury and procedure.

Clean compositions and intentional camera angles guided the viewer’s attention. Motion was purposeful — never distracting.

While simplified for clarity, every anatomical structure, device placement, and surgical step remained consistent with medical documentation and expert testimony.

By transforming a lengthy surgical procedure into a structured, visually intuitive narrative, complex medical information became accessible, engaging, and memorable — while maintaining medical credibility.

Our Work

Left Hip Arthroplasty Surgical Animation
Spinal Stimulator Implant Surgical Animation
Post-Operative Colorized Film

Each visual was custom-built to align with the surgical records, operative reports, imaging and expert opinions in the case.

Results

With the help of our animations, the client achieved a successful outcome and the case settled for $20 million.

Testimonial

"Michelle, Emily and the whole Iconographics team are incredible to work with. They are incredibly responsive and meetings were productive and helpful. They listen to what you are looking for, make sure they have everything they need to design it with precision and detail, and then deliver an incredible product. They were very receptive to suggestions and changes and the finished product looked incredible and was set to be played during opening at trial. The impact of the recreation was powerful and really bolstered our arguments leading to a very positive resolution. Great experience the whole way through and an invaluable resource for hammering home the impact of a collision or trauma of a medical procedure."

Kylan J. King, Bendinelli Law Firm