Even minor surgeries can be complicated affairs. Recognizing this, hospitals require patients to sign waivers acknowledging that their procedure will come with some risk before they can perform the surgery. Certain mistakes, however, when made by trained medical professionals, are inexcusable. Errors made during surgery, for instance, that result in the perforation or puncture of an organ during a surgical procedure, fall under the category of medical malpractice. Surgeons can be held liable for making these kinds of avoidable mistakes, so if you or a loved one were injured during your surgical procedure because of a medical professional’s carelessness, you should consider speaking with an experienced Miami medical malpractice lawyer, who can help you seek compensation for your losses.
Organ Damage
Mistakes made during surgery can lead to the perforation or puncturing of an organ, in which a hole develops in the wall of the organ itself. This occurs most often in the stomach, small and large intestines, esophagus, rectum, and gallbladder. While certain medical conditions can cause organ perforation, many are the result of surgical negligence, including everything from the slip of a surgeon’s hand to the use of the wrong surgical instrument. In some cases, surgical errors can quickly be repaired, leading to minor complications that can be overcome relatively quickly. Failing to notice an error, however, or failing to perform the repair properly, can have devastating consequences for patients, who may suffer from internal bleeding, extreme pain, infection, and in severe cases, organ failure. A severe infection known as peritonitis is particularly common in these cases and occurs when the contents of the punctured organ leak into the abdomen.
Recovering Your Medical Expenses
Peritonitis and the other infections and side effects that so often accompany perforated organs can be life-threatening if left unaddressed through emergency surgery and the use of aggressive antibiotics. Unfortunately, besides being both risky and painful, this treatment is extremely expensive, which can be particularly frustrating for patients who went in for routine surgery but came out with severe complications. These costs, along with diagnosis-related expenses are, however, recoverable by patients who file successful medical malpractice claims. It is also possible to receive compensation for lost wages, pain and suffering, and emotional distress. If you have questions about your own recovery options, please call our dedicated legal team today.
Reach Out to an Experienced Miami Medical Malpractice Lawyer
All surgeries come with some degree of risk. Certain kinds of harm, however, are preventable if the medical professional in question uses the proper level of care. If you have evidence that your own surgery-related injuries were the result of a medical error, you could be entitled to compensation. For an evaluation of your own case, please reach out to the dedicated Miami medical malpractice lawyers at Dolan Dobrinsky Rosenblum, LLP. We recognize that injuries rarely occur when you expect them and so make ourselves available to answer your questions and concerns 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Please call us at 305-371-2692 today to learn more.