Excessive Blood Loss During Surgery

To protect a patient from excessive blood loss, a surgeon is held to an established standard of care.

While there is a certain level of risk associated with every surgery, a surgeon will be aware of these risks and will follow established protocols to prevent these risk from causing harm to the patient. If a surgeon fails to adhere to this standard of care and you suffer harm as a result, you may be compensated by means of a medical malpractice lawsuit. Speak with a St. Louis medical malpractice attorney today if you or a loved one were harmed as a result of a surgical procedure.

Risks of Excessive Blood Loss During Surgery

Blood loss is a known risk for many surgeries. An excessive loss of blood volume will starve tissue and vital organs, causing irreversible damage. It is for this reason that the loss of blood is carefully monitored during any type of medical procedure or surgery. If the accepted standard of care is not followed, the patient could suffer severe harm and even death. There are a number of procedures in place that assist a surgeon if the patient is bleeding excessively. Depending on the circumstances, a surgeon may be held liable for medical negligence if these procedures are not used to prevent excessive blood loss.

Preventing Excessive Blood Loss During Surgery

When a patient is bleeding excessively during surgery, a surgeon may choose to stop the surgery until the patient is more stable. Ignoring signs of distress and continuing with the surgery may be detrimental to the health of the patient and medically negligent. This was the case of a Missouri rancher who required surgery to repair an abdominal injury. There was a great amount of blood loss during the surgery that vital organ function was lost. This was something that the surgeon should have clearly been able to see and prevent. The loss of organ function led to the death of the gentleman. His family filed a medical malpractice claim against the hospital and the surgeon; the claim was settled for $505,000.

Filing a Medical Negligence Claim

In order for a medical negligence claim to be successful, a St. Louis medical malpractice attorney needs to be able to show how the patient suffered harm, and how the physician or surgeon did not follow what is considered to be the typical standard of care. In the case where blood loss caused more harm to the patient, it would have to be shown how the surgeon either did not react to the blood loss appropriately, or acted negligently in causing it. Receiving compensation for a medical malpractice claim requires the help of other medical experts. There are strict criteria that must be met in order for the claim to be considered valid.

St. Louis Medical Malpractice Attorney

Signing a consent form before surgery does not invalidate your right to seek compensation if something goes wrong during a surgery or medical procedure. Speak with a qualified St. Louis medical malpractice attorney if you believe that your injury caused by surgery was preventable. Contact Zevan and Davidson Law Firm at (314) 588-7200 for a free consultation.