Major Medical Complications Caused by Unchecked IV Lines

Even the simplest of medical procedures may include the placement of an IV, just to keep the patient hydrated.

Intravenous transmission is the use of a small tube inserted directly into a vein in order to administer drugs or fluids to a patient. While its use is common, mistakes are still made, either with its insertion or removal, or with a medication error that is delivered through the IV line. Call a Missouri medical malpractice attorney today if you or someone in your family suffered from further injury during a medical stay as a result of a problem with the IV.

Injuries Associated with IV Use

Medication errors associated with IV use is on the rise due to the increasing dependence on machinery to monitor dosages. This now doubles the risk of injury since you still have a medical professional who is responsible for making sure that the right drug is being administered at the right dosage, plus making sure that the IV pump is programmed properly. A misstep in any of these procedures can cause a patient to become more ill as a result.

Typically in cases like these, the first step for a Missouri medical malpractice attorney will be to determine who should be held responsible. Wrong drug or dosage can be the fault of the physician if the prescription was not right, the pharmacist if he misfiled that prescription, or the medical professional who administered it. If the error was with the machinery then the attorney will also consider a suit against the manufacturer in a product liability claim or the hospital for failure to maintain it.

Extravasation Injuries

An extravasation injury is the second cause of medical malpractice claims related to IV use. These are injuries that occur at the site of the IV caused by a leakage of fluid underneath the skin that is not making it into the vein. Depending on the length of time it is allowed to continue and the medication involved,  extravasation injuries can lead to blisters, burns, and even nerve and muscle damage. The family of a young boy who was hospitalized with a case of chicken pox won a settlement with the hospital and physician for a burn injury that he had received from his IV.

Most extravasation injury medical malpractice lawsuits are centered around the medical personnel’s failure to note the presence of fluid at the IV site and treat it before it manifests. Plaintiffs will need to gather medical testimony from other physicians who will be able to explain what the standard of care is in checking IV sites and how the physicians and nurses deviated from that standard.

Missouri Medical Malpractice Attorney

With the use of IV technology as common as it is, it is almost unthinkable to imagine that avoidable errors like these still occur. If your IV site was affected by a build-up of fluids, or if you were injured by the wrong medication being administered, contact Zevan and Davidson Law Firm at (314) 588-7200 to help you receive compensation.

Photo credit: Thirteen of Clubs