In Tseng v. Mazzocco Ambulatory Surgery Center, a $2.25 million Los Angeles County medical malpractice verdict has been awarded to a patient who sustained an anoxic brain injury while undergoing eye surgery. The plaintiff's legal team had accused Ambulatory Surgery Center of medical negligence for allowing the mistake to occur.
Per the case files, when the plaintiff had eye surgery for a prosthetic lens implant, the medical center and the anesthesiologist reportedly knew that that the patient a serious, preexisting kidney disease and was also suffering from diabetes. The plaintiff claims that while he was sedated the anesthesiologist left him unattended with nurses that lacked the license or training to treat someone in his state. After suffering a reaction to the anesthesia, he went into a deeper state of sedation than he should have and stopped breathing for long enough that he developed an anoxic brain injury known as a cerebral hypoxia.
The plaintiff's attorney contends that this particular anesthesiologist, who allegedly has a habit of leaving patients while they are sedated, did not provide the patient with a high standard of care. A Los Angeles anesthesiology malpractice settlement has been reached with this doctor.
Anesthesia is used to allow a patient to not experience pain while undergoing a medical procedure. It is important that anesthesia be administered by a qualified physician that knows how to make sure this process is done safely and with the proper standards of medical care--especially if the patient suffers a dangerous reaction to it or experiences other complications. In some cases involving anesthesia mistakes, deaths have occurred. Another unfortunate outcome is anesthesia awareness where those in the operating room do not realize that the patient is awake and feeling pain during the surgery but cannot communicate the experience.
Common anesthesia mistakes include:
• Inadequate monitoring
• Anesthesia overdose
• Inadequate dosing of anesthesia
• Machine misuse
• Machine malfunction
$2.25 Million San Fernando Valley, CA Medical Malpractice Verdict Obtained by The Mandell Law Firm for Eye Surgery Patient, Digital Journal, June 16, 2011
Medical Malpractice, Nolo
American Society of Anesthesiologists
More Blog Posts:
Anaheim Medical Malpractice?: Wrong-Side Kidney Operation Performed on a Patient, California Injury Lawyers Blog, June 6, 2011
Family of Lawndale Woman to Pursue Los Angeles Surgery Malpractice Action Over Her California Wrongful Death from Lap-Band Surgery, California Injury Lawyers Blog, April 27, 2011
$4.6M Los Angeles County Medical Malpractice Verdict Over Wrongful Death of Man Wrongly Diagnosed by Glendale Doctor, California Injury Lawyers Blog, April 11, 2011
