Surgical Complications Indicating Possible Malpractice
Name of Procedure Risks Adenoidectomy
- Bleeding
- Nasal speech
- Nasal regurgitation of food or liquids
Anesthesia, general
- Abnormal reaction to drugs
- Aspiration of stomach contents
- Injury to vocal cords or throat
- Injury to teeth, lips, and tongue
- Brain damage
- Malignant hyperthermia
Angiography, cerebral
- Injury to the arteries entered
- Bleeding at the site of entry by catheter
- Stroke
- Blindness or brain damage
- Emboli to the brain
- Allergic reaction to the injected contrast medium
Angiography, coronary
- Injury to the artery
- Damage to heart
- Mocardial infarction
- Possible need for open heart surgery
- Irregular heartbeat
- Bleeding at the site of entrance
- Allergic reaction to injected contrast medium
Angioplasty
- Paraplegia
- Loss of extremity
- Bowel infarction
- Renal failure
Aortic Dissection
- Stroke
- Renal failure
- Bowel infarction
- Paraplegia
- Death
Aortic Graft
- Bleeding or Infection
- Infection or emboli
- Kidney failure or loss of limb
- Inadequate blood to bowel or spinal cord
- Myocardial infarction
- Sexual dysfunction
- Death
Appendectomy
- Infection
- Bleeding
- Intra-abdominal abscess
- Leakage from the colon requiring colostomy
- Hernia in the incision
Arteriovenous Shunt for Hemodialysis
- Bleeding or infection
- Damage blood vessel with risk of rupture
- Recurrent thrombosis
- Severe edema of extremity
- Inadequate blood supply to extremity
- Inadequate blood supply to nerves
Birth of child
- Injury to bladder
- Injury to rectum
- Fistula between vagina and rectum
- Hemorrhage possibly requiring hysterectomy
- Brain damage to fetus
Blood Transfusion
- Fever
- Kidney failure
- Heart failure
- Hepatitis
- AIDS
Breast Augmentation
- Risks of use of silicon gel are excluded
- Scar formation around implant causing hard breast
- Deflation of implant
- Loss of sensation to the nipple and breast
- Persistent pain in breast
- Distortion of breast mound
- Leakage of implant contents
Breast Biopsy, Excisional
- Infection and/or blood clot
- Failure to obtain accurate diagnosis
- Disfiguring scar
- Failure to locate and remove abnormality
Cardiopulmonary Bypass
- Stroke
- Respiratory complications
- Kidney failure
- Death
Carotid Endarterectomy
- Blood clots
- Infection
- Stroke
- Nerve injury causing mouth, throat, or tongue problems
- Myocardial infarction
- Death
Cataract Surgery
- Loss of vision or decrease in vision
- Loss of eye
- Bleeding inside or behind eye
- Painful eye
- Droopy eyelid
Catheterization, central venous
- Hemorrhage into chest cavity or elsewhere
- Pericardial tamponade (compression of heart)
- Cardiac arrest or stroke
- Collapse of lung
- Damage to blood vessels
- Infusion of fluid into chest cavity
Cervix, Removal
- Uncontrollable leakage of urine
- Injury to the bladder
- Injury to the bowel or intestinal obstruction
- Injury to the urethra
- Sterility
- Pulmonary embolism
Cholecystectomy
- Pancreatitis
- Injury to the bile duct
- Retained stones in the bile duct
- Narrowing of the bile duct
- Injury to the bowel
Coarctation of Aorta
- Quadriplegia or paraplegia
- Permanent hoarseness
- Leakage of body fluid from intestines into chest
- Loss of bowel and/or bladder function
- Impotence in males
Colon Surgery
- Infection of the incision
- Intra-abdominal abscess
- Leakage from colon and possible colostomy
- Injury to other organs or blood vessels
- Diarrhea, sometimes permanent
- Formation of scar tissue causing intestinal blockage
- Hernia in incision
Colonoscopy
- Infection or bleeding
- Perforation of colon or rectal wall
- Cardiac arrhythmias
Dental Implants
- Infection, bleeding, failure to heal
- Permanent and disfiguring scarring
- Premature loss of implant, or mobility
- Loss of bone
- Numbness of face or mouth
- Fracture of jaw
- Injury to adjacent teeth or sinus
Dilation and Curettage
- Hemorrhage with possible hysterectomy
- Perforation of the uterus
- Injury to the bowel or bladder
- Sterility
Ear Tubes
- Persistent infection
- Perforation of eardrum or cyst behind the eardrum
- Need to surgically remove tubes
Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangio Pancreatogram (ERCP)
- Infection
- Perforation of esophagus, stomach, or intestines
- Cardiac arrhythmias
- Pancreatic inflammation
Endoscopy, abdominal
- Puncture of the bowel or blood vessel
- Abdominal infection
- Operation to correct injury
- Injury to urethra
- Injury to bladder
Epidural, spinal
- Abnormal reaction to drugs
- Leakage of cerebrospinal fluid
- Epidural blood clot or abscess
- Broken needles or catheters
- Incomplete analgesia
- Back pain and/or paralysis
- Severe headaches
Femoral Bypass Grafts
- Bleeding requiring re-operation
- Necrosis of skin around incision
- Thrombi or emboli
- Limb loss
- Nerve damage
- Myocardial infarction
- Death
Fibroid Removal (Uterine myomectomy)
- Uncontrollable leakage of urine
- Injury to bladder
- Injury to the urethra
- Injury to the bowel and/or intestinal obstruction
- Sterility
- Pulmonary embolism
Gastrectomy or Phloroplasty
- Infection of incision or inside abdomen
- Bleeding requiring transfusion
- Leakage from stomach
- Inability to maintain weight
- Chronic vomiting after eating
- Diarrhea and need for vitamin B-12 injections
- Recurrence of condition for which surgery was done
Hemodialysis
- Hypotension, hemorrhage, sepsis, cardiac arrhythmias
- Allergic reaction to tubing and dialyzer
- Pulmonary edema
- Air bubbles in the bloodstream
- Seizure, hypothermia, fever
- Viral infections such as HIV
- Cardiac arrest
Hemorrhoidectomy
- Bleeding
- Post operative pain, especially with bowel movements
- Temporary/permanent difficulty controlling bowels or gas
- Recurrence of hemorrhoids
- Narrowing of anal opening requiring repeated dilations
Hernia Repair
- Infection
- Bleeding
- Recurrence of hernia
- Injury to or loss of testicle or spermatic cords
- Nerve injury resulting in numbness or chronic pain
Hysterectomy, abdominal or vaginal
- Uncontrollable leakage of urine
- Injury to bladder
- Injury to urethra
- Injury to the bowel and/or intestinal obstruction
- Painful intercourse
- Ovarian failure requiring hormone administration
- Formation of fistula between vagina and rectum
Kidney Stone Lithotripsy
- Bleeding in or around kidney
- Obstruction of kidney by stone particles
- Failure to completely fragment stones
- High blood pressure
- Loss of kidney
Liver Biopsy
- Bleeding
- Lung collapse
- Internal leakage of bile
- Puncture of other organs
- Aspiration pneumonia
Lumpectomy
- Infection or blood clot
- Disfiguring scar
- Fluid collection in arm pit
- Numbness to arm
- Swelling of arm
- Damage to nerves of arm or chest
- Recurrence of cancer
Mastectomy, radical
- Limitation of movement of shoulder or arm
- Swelling of the arm
- Loss of skin requiring graft
- Failure to eradicate the malignancy
- Injury to major blood vessel
Oral Surgery
- Infection, bleeding, failure to heal
- Injury to adjacent teeth
- Numbness of face and/or mouth
- Fracture of either jaw
- Opening between mouth and sinus or nose
- Tooth fragment in sinus
- Dry socket
Penile Implant
- Bleeding and infection
- Penile pain or numbness
- Injury to bladder or urethra
- Problems with implantable prosthetic
Prostatectomy
- Bleeding and/or infection
- Injury to bladder, urethra, or rectum
- Impotence
- Retrograde ejaculation
- Bladder blockage
- Incontinence
Radial Keratotomy
- Loss of vision or decrease in vision
- Loss of eye
- Variable vision
- Radiating images around lights
- Over or under correction
- Cataract formation
- Retained need for glasses
Radiation Therapy, Head/neck - Initial Reaction
- Altered sense of smell, taste, or nausea
- Difficulty swallowing, weight loss, fatigue
- Hoarseness, cough, loss of voice
- Hearing loss, dizziness
- Dry and irritable eyes
- Increased risk of infection and/or bleeding
- Intensified by chemotherapy
Radiation Therapy, head/neck - Late Reaction
- Tooth decay and gum changes
- Bone damage in jaws
- Hair loss, scarring of skin
- Swelling of tissues under chin
- Brain, spinal cord or nerve damage
- Pituitary or thyroid gland damage
- Second cancers developing
Radiation Therapy, Thorax - Initial Reaction
- Skin changes, hair loss on the chest
- Inflammation of the esophagus, heart sac, or lungs
- Bleeding or fistula from tumor destruction
- Intermittent electric shock-like feeling in the lower body
- Increased risk of infection or bleeding
- Intensified by chemotherapy
Radiation Therapy, Thorax - Late Reaction
- Changes in skin texture, scarring, hair loss
- Lung scarring or shrinkage
- Narrowing of esophagus
- Constriction of heart sac
- Damage to heart muscle or arteries
- Fracture of ribs
- Spinal cord or liver damage
Radical Mastectomy
- Limitation of shoulder or arm movement
- Swelling of the arm
- Loss of the skin of the chest
- Failure to completely eradicate the malignancy
- Decreased sensation or numbness
- Injury to major blood vessels
Renal Biopsy
- Injury to adjacent organs
- Infection
- Hypotension
- Bleeding from the kidney
- Intestinal perforation
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