Orthopedic surgeons perform a large number of ankle surgeries every year. Although in most of the cases, the outcome is successful and patients do not face any complication; in several cases, patients do suffer from post-surgical complexities. Often, these complications are a result of negligence by practicing medical professionals. For serious complexities and health conditions, the patient can seek legal representation for his/her health condition and to get compensation for the same. In this article, we’ll discuss the potential threats that a patient can face after a medical operation and how an orthopedic expert witness can help in building the case strong and valid.
You’ll find some important information regarding medical malpractices in ankle surgeries. Seek legal help if you find you think that there has been malpractice in your case. The attorneys will not only provide legal guidance but will also take second opinions and case reviews from orthopedic expert witnesses.
Establishing liability in Ankle surgery malpractices:
Most of the case predictions are done based on the negligence of the surgeons. However, to prove negligence, it’s important to establish the following elements mentioned below:
- Duty– Every doctor owes a duty of care towards his patient. So, the plaintiff needs to establish that the doctor had a certain duty of care towards him.
- Breach of duty of care– It has to be established that the surgeon or the medical professional had breached the duty of care towards him.
- Causation– It needs to be proved that the plaintiff has suffered injuries and complications due to breach of care of duty.
- Damages– It has to be proved that the damages caused to the plaintiff are the result of orthopedic malpractices.
For example, in surgeries related to torn tendons, a doctor has to follow a 10 step process. So, if the surgeon fails to follow the right procedure at step 6, it will be considered as malpractice since he failed to show at one of the steps.
Surgical procedures and the complications:
Some of the common ankle surgeries are as follows:
- Torn tendon
- Tendon replacement surgeries
- Ankle arthroscopy
- Cheilectomy
- Total ankle replacement surgery
These are some of the common procedures followed in California. Patients can face post-surgical complications and some of them are as follows:
- Nerve damage
- Nerve entrapment
- Medication errors after surgery
- Blood clots
- Misplacing of screws
- Gangrene and Sepsis
- Foot amputation
These are some of the complications that a patient can face. So if you can seek legal help if you’ve been injured or you’re facing any other health conditions. Lawyers will take outside opinion from the orthopedic experts to prove the claims in the court. These witnesses are vital to a malpractice case because they can provide comprehensive information on specific surgery cases and find out if there has been malpractice.