Orthopaedic surgery is set to resume at a south Wales hospital on Monday after it was suspended last month following a mix-up during an operation.

Annie May Carter died 11 days after having a second operation to remove the knee joint which had been mistakenly inserted into her leg at Prince Charles Hospital in Merthyr.

An investigation by a consultant from the Royal College of Surgeons (RCS) revealed that human error had led to a right-knee joint being used instead of a left one.

Mrs Carter, 59, suffered from angina. There is no evidence linking her death with the surgery.

Operations postponed

As a result of the human error conclusion, the hospital was given the all-clear to resume emergency orthopaedic surgery.

But non-urgent operations will not be booked for another two weeks.

Mrs Carter died after suffering three heart attacks

About 40 planned orthopaedic operations at the hospital have been postponed during the suspension with a further 80 in the pipeline pushed back.

The hospital has now instigated new procedures to try and stop such a mistake happening again, including an immediate update of storage and stocking methods.

An RCS consultant also commented on the need for clearer labelling of prostheses, a point the hospital's governing NHS trust said it would take up with the manufacturers, as this would help orthopaedic teams throughout the health service.

The hospital's medical director, Dr Terence Morris, said on Wednesday: "I was pleased to be advised that this orthopaedic team can resume operating duties at Prince Charles Hospital.

Around 120 operations have been affected

"There remains a problem with overall staffing levels due to vacancies and leave and, as a consequence, patients will not be booked for planned operations for another two weeks although the position will be kept under continual review.

An inquest last week into the death of Mrs Carter, from Gurnos, Merthyr Tydfil, was adjourned until further investigations are completed.