The Doctors Company released a new study that examines medical malpractice claims against cardiologists. As the largest physician owned medical malpractice insurer, The Doctors Company has valuable insight into medical malpractice issues. The study looked at 429 cardiology claims from 2007 through 2013 against cardiologists.
5 Most Common Allegations
25% - Incorrect, Delayed, or Failure to Diagnose
The most common allegation in cases of cardiology medical malpractice was an incorrect, delayed, or failure to diagnose the condition. This included:
- Establishment of a differential diagnosis
- Consideration of available clinical information
- Diagnostic tests
- Addressing of abnormal findings
The following conditions were those that cardiologists most commonly failed to diagnose:
- Puncture or laceration during a procedure
- Carcinoma of the lung
- Acute myocardial infarction
- Pulmonary embolism with infarction
- Coronary artery artherosclerosis
- Aortic dissection
14% - Improper Management of Treatment
This concerns decisions made about therapeutic measures. For example, "the appropriateness of ordering stress tests for patients who suffered cardiac arrest during the procedure."
12% - Improper Performance of Treatment or Procedure
Some examples of procedures/treatments that were performed improperly included:
- Esophageal perforation during transesophageal echocardiogram
- Retroperitoneal bleeding
- Punctured external iliac artery
- Hematomas
- Cardiac tamponade
- Aortic laceration from cardiac catheterization
11% - Improper Performance of Surgery
Improperly performed surgeries included:
- Cardiac damage during ablations resulting in the need for a pacemaker
- Arterial injury during mitral valve repair
- Retroperitoneal bleeding from arterial punctures during coronary catheterization with stent placement
- Incorrectly placed leads and infections from pacemaker implantation
- Cardiac tamponade
6% - Improper Medication Management
- Improper management of anticoagulants leading to stroke
- Lower extremity compartment syndrome
- Retroperitoneal bleeding with exsanguination
6 Most Common Factors Contributing to Patient Injury
- 25% - Patient Assessment Issues
- 21% - Technical Performance
- 20% - Patient Factors
- 18% - Selection and Management of Therapy
- 15% - Communication Among Providers
- 14% - Communication Between Patient/Family and Provider
If you were injured because of medical malpractice, contact our attorneys at The Snyder Litigation Team today! We offer free consultations to get you started.