Massachusetts Malpractice Lawyers, Boston
Bowel injuries can result in a variety of complications including disability, lengthy hospital stays, and even death. It is important to note that each case of bowel perforation is different and involves a variety of factors, which means that not every situation involves medical malpractice. A seasoned medical malpractice attorney can perform an evaluation of your initial surgery as well as the nature of your injury and your post operative condition. A skilled medical malpractice attorney will also remain committed to fighting for the compensation you deserve. This is why you should not hesitate to obtain the assistance of a skilled attorney.
The Standard of Care in Bowel Perforation Cases
Bowel injuries often involve punctures to bowel walls during an abdominal procedure. If a bowel perforation injury occurs during a medical procedure, there is a good chance there is evidence that the medical provider who performed the surgery failed to adhere to the standard of medical care. However, there is a possibility that medical malpractice might not have occurred if the injury resulted despite the surgeon using the appropriate technique and medical care.
Delayed Diagnosis of Bowel Injuries
In many cases of bowel injuries, the question of medical malpractice revolves around a surgeon’s inability to recognize an injury during pre-op or surgery rather than how the injury was created. Bowel injuries are often associated with various signs including pain, fever, tachycardia, and tachypnea. These signs should alert medical professionals to the likelihood that a patient is experiencing a bowel perforation or other injury. If these signs are noticed, medical professionals will often conduct a physical examination for any indications of distention or tenderness in the abdominal region.
The Importance of Prompt Diagnosis
In many cases, the degree of perforation that occurs depends on how quickly a patient is treated. When the symptoms of bowel perforation do not have any other potential explanations, a physician is required to perform adequate diagnostic testing and monitoring. Improvements in CT scans have made this technique the best way to detect bowel perforation, which means that a patient should receive this imaging to determine if bowel perforation is present. Failure to adequately treat bowel perforations can eventually lead to systemic complications including bacteremia, which involves bacteria circulating through a person’s bloodstream.
Contact a Skilled Medical Malpractice Attorney
There are several common defense strategies raised in bowel injury cases including that the injury was an accepted risk of the associated surgery, that the signs of bowel injury overlap with a more benign process, and arguing that bowel injuries are often diagnosed during the early stages of post-operative surgeries. To respond to these various defenses, it is important that a medical malpractice victim or their loved ones obtain the assistance of a skilled attorney like the legal counsel at The Law Offices of Gerald J. Noonan. For over 35 years, our law firm has helped people impacted by medical malpractice. We know what it takes to win even the most difficult cases. Contact our law firm today for assistance.
We offer a free, no-obligation legal consultation to help you understand your rights and the value of your case.
Our medical malpractice lawyers assist clients throughout all of Massachusetts including, but not limited to, those in the following counties, cities and towns: Plymouth County, Brockton, Plymouth, Bridgewater, Marshfield, Hingham, Duxbury, Wareham, Abington, Rockland, Whitman, Hanson, Holbrook, Middleborough; Norfolk County including Quincy, Stoughton, Dedham, Weymouth, Braintree, Avon, Holbrook, Randolph, Canton, Sharon, Brookline, Franklin; Bristol County including New Bedford, Fall River, Taunton, Attleboro, Westport, Dartmouth, Mansfield, Easton, Raynham, Lakeville, Norton; Cape Cod, Hyannis, Falmouth, Barnstable and the Greater Boston area including Cambridge, Somerville, Medford, Everett, Lawrence, Lynn, Revere, Dorchester, Roxbury.
