Nearly 89% of patients fear anesthesia, and for good reason. Anesthesia errors can kill or cause permanent disabilities. You could suffer nerve or brain damage that affects you physically, cognitively, and emotionally.
Not all adverse events will support a medical malpractice claim. But if a doctor commits an unreasonable and preventable mistake, a Joliet anesthesia error lawyer can analyze your case and explain your rights under Illinois law.
Contact Zayed Law Offices Personal Injury Attorneys in Joliet, IL, at (815) 726-1616 for a free initial consultation to discuss your claim.
How Zayed Law Offices Personal Injury Attorneys Can Help With an Anesthesia Error Claim in Joliet, IL
Zayed Law Offices Personal Injury Attorneys was established to represent injured clients against the businesses and people responsible for their damages. Our Joliet medical malpractice lawyers have a track record of winning over 99% of the time.
After suffering an anesthesia injury in Joliet, Illinois, our attorneys can provide the following:
- Legal advice and counsel to help you understand your rights and make informed decisions
- A thorough investigation of your medical treatment
- Negotiations with adjusters and hospitals to try to settle your insurance claims
- Decades of courtroom experience to litigate your case if it does not settle
Injuries from a medical error can leave you with long-term disabilities. Contact our experienced Joliet medical malpractice attorneys for a free consultation to discuss your anesthesia injury and the compensation you can seek.
How Many Anesthesia Errors Happen?
Anesthesia injuries are not as rare as you might expect. No one has surveyed U.S. anesthesiologists about their error rates. However, a study in Canada revealed that 85% of anesthesiologists committed an anesthesia error that caused injury or a “near miss” that almost resulted in injury.
Across the U.S., patients have roughly a 1 in 250,000 chance of dying due to an anesthesia error. Patients can also suffer non-fatal outcomes, ranging from minor throat injuries to permanent brain damage.
Causes and Effects of Anesthesia Errors
Anesthesia errors can happen in many ways and produce many types of personal injuries. Causes of anesthesia errors and some possible effects include:
Miscommunication
Anesthesiologists must have your information to correctly administer anesthesia.
Without the information in your records and accurate information from your doctor, the anesthesiologist will not know:
- Your allergies
- Your weight
- The procedure you will undergo
If the anesthesiologist relies on the wrong information, you could receive the wrong drug or the wrong dose of the right drug. This, in turn, can cause an overdose or underdose.
An overdose means you received too much of the anesthetic. Overdoses of a general anesthetic can lead to coma or death. Overdoses of local or regional anesthetics can permanently damage the nerves.
Underdoses occur when you receive a dose too small to produce an anesthetic effect. As a result, you might feel pain or move during the procedure. In a worst-case scenario, you might awaken during an invasive procedure, like surgery.
Miscommunication might also cause an anesthesiologist to administer a drug that triggers an allergic reaction. The allergen could trigger anaphylaxis or death.
Miscalculation
Even when a doctor has the correct information, they can miscalculate. The doctor may miscalculate the dose through simple arithmetic mistakes. Or they may misremember the formula for determining the amount to administer. Based on a miscalculation, the patient may suffer an overdose or underdose.
Anesthesiologist Carelessness
Carelessness can cause an anesthesiologist to administer the wrong drug or dose.
For example, the Canadian survey revealed that one of the most common types of anesthesia errors include:
- Syringe swaps, where the anesthesiologist grabs the wrong syringe
- Misidentifying the label on a medication
In the survey, 97.9% of anesthesiologists reported reading the labels “most of the time” and using the label color as a secondary indicator of the medication. This means over 2% of anesthesiologists do not read labels most of the time, and even those who do could administer the wrong drug or dose due to misinterpreting the color of the label.
Failure To Monitor Vitals
When doctors administer general anesthesia for surgery, they must monitor your heart rate and respiration. These drugs include sedatives that can depress blood pressure, respiration, and heartbeat.
If an anesthesiologist fails to monitor and maintain your vitals, you can suffer brain damage due to a lack of oxygen. In just a few minutes, this surgical error can cause coma or death.
Pharmacy Mistakes
Anesthesia errors might result from someone other than the anesthesiologist. Pharmacists can make mistakes when they supply drugs to the anesthesiologist for administration. If the drug gets mismarked or the anesthesiologist fails to check the label, you might receive the wrong medication, concentration, or dose.
Schedule a Free Consultation With Our Experienced Joliet Anesthesia Error Attorneys
An anesthesia error can cause permanent disabilities, coma, or death. Contact Zayed Law Offices Personal Injury Attorneys at (815) 726-1616 for a free consultation to discuss the injuries you suffered and the claims you might have against your doctor.
