You can suffer grave consequences when your anesthesiologist makes a mistake. Since anesthetics are intended to affect the nervous system, any errors can cause permanent damage to the nerves and brain. Patients may even suffer coma or death due to an adverse drug event.
The legal team at Robles Babaee Personal Injury Lawyers helps people injured by medical malpractice recover compensation from those responsible. If you experienced an anesthesia error in Santa Ana, CA, contact our law office at 714-263-3700 for a free initial consultation to discuss your options.
How Robles Babaee Personal Injury Lawyers Can Help You With an Anesthesia Error Claim in Santa Ana, CA
Robles Babaee Personal Injury Lawyers represents clients in Santa Ana, California, against the people and companies responsible for harming them. Our Santa Ana medical malpractice lawyers are battle-tested. Over their careers, they have recovered millions of dollars for injured people like you.
The firm provides the following services if you suffered an injury due to the negligent or wrongful actions of others:
- A free consultation so you can learn about your legal right to compensation
- Investigating your case to gather critical documents, records, and other evidence
- Preparing an insurance claim and fighting insurers for a fair settlement
- Filing a lawsuit against at-fault parties if we cannot negotiate a settlement
An anesthesia error can have serious consequences, such as permanent brain damage. Contact our Santa Ana personal injury attorneys to discuss your anesthesia error and the compensation you can seek for your injuries.
Do Anesthesia Errors Occur Frequently?
Adverse drug events are defined as any harm resulting from exposure to a drug. These events can include allergic reactions, unwanted side effects, and overdoses. Moreover, they can cover any medication, from antibiotics to sedatives.
Between 1% and 2% of hospitalized patients experience an adverse drug event, and about 1% of them suffer injury or death from the mistake. This number might seem miniscule. However, American hospitals treat over 33 million patients annually. Based on these statistics, hospitals commit thousands of preventable medication errors affecting patients under their care.
Not all of these adverse drug events arise from anesthesia. For example, a patient experiences an adverse drug event when they break out in hives after taking penicillin.
However, many of these adverse drug events will involve anesthetics. According to one survey, over 75% of anesthesiologists admitted to witnessing an adverse drug event during their careers. Nearly 8% of anesthesiologists reported that these events had injured or killed a patient.
Characteristics of Anesthesia Errors
Anesthetics have three primary uses. Local anesthetics block the electrical channels used by nerve cells to communicate. They prevent nerve endings from sending pain signals to the brain.
Regional anesthetics use the same operating principle, but they are administered to nerve roots or even spinal nerves to numb large areas of the body. An epidural during labor and delivery is an example of this type of anesthetic.
General anesthetics combine an anesthetic with a sedative to render the patient unconscious. These anesthetics often block the neurotransmitters that carry messages in the brain to effectively shut the brain down. Opiates are frequently used as part of a general anesthetic.
Administering these powerful drugs requires skill and care. A simple mistake can injure or kill a patient.
Types of Anesthesia Mistakes
Anesthesia errors can take several forms. An overdose happens when a doctor, dentist, or anesthesiologist administers too much anesthetic. This mistake can depress the patient’s nerve functions more than intended.
An underdose occurs when a medical professional administers too little anesthesia. The patient may experience pain or even wake up during surgery.
When a practitioner administers general anesthesia, they must monitor the patient’s vital signs. A patient’s blood pressure, breathing, and heart rate can drop while sedated. When doctors fail to monitor the patient, oxygen levels can drop, leading to catastrophic injuries to the brain and vital organs.
Anesthesia-Related Injuries
Anesthesia errors can cause many types of injuries. An overdose of local or regional anesthetic can result in permanent nerve damage. These injuries can cause numbness, drooping, and loss of dexterity in the affected area.
Anesthesia errors can also cause anoxic or hypoxic brain injuries. These injuries happen when the patient’s respiration and circulation drop so low that their brain does not receive enough oxygen. The brain cells die, leading to permanent brain damage, coma, or death.
An underdose can produce an event called anesthetic awareness, in which a patient wakes up during a procedure but remains paralyzed. This condition can cause mental trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder when the patient can feel their operation.
The Link Between Anesthesia Errors and Medical Malpractice
Anesthesia errors do not always equal medical malpractice. Known side effects discussed with the patient or allergic reactions that the practitioner could not have reasonably anticipated do not constitute medical malpractice.
To prove a malpractice claim, you and your attorney must demonstrate that the mistake was unreasonable. In other words, you must show that your care didn’t meet the level expected from a reasonably careful healthcare provider.
Schedule a Free Consultation With Our Santa Ana Anesthesia Error Lawyers
Medical malpractice can have life-changing effects on your health and finances. Contact Robles Babaee Personal Injury Lawyers at 714-263-3700 for a free consultation to discuss your anesthesia error and how we can help you stand up to malpractice insurers for compensation.