SUBARACHNOID HEMORRHAGE
MEDICAL MALPRACTICE LAWYERS
MEDICAL MALPRACTICE LAWYERS
A brain aneurysm is a weak bulging area in a cerebral artery, usually caused naturally by wear and tear of the walls of the blood vessel, which may eventually lead to a rupture and subsequent bleeding. Rupture of the artery at the location of a brain aneurysm often occurs at a time of physical effort such as coughing, going to the toilet, heavy lifting or during sexual activity. Whilst the root cause of a brain aneurysm is usually a natural phenomena, subsequent identification of an ensuing subarachnoid hemorrhage and failure to properly treat the condition may amount to medical malpractice.
There are many contributing risk factors that have been identified to the cause of a brain aneurysm which include smoking, hypertension and traumatic head injury. The condition may show hereditary tendencies and is associated with Ehler’s Syndrome, Polycystic Kidney Disease and Mar fan’s Syndrome. Approximately 30,000 people suffer from a subarachnoid hemorrhage in the United States each year, many with fatal consequences.
Most people who suffer from the symptoms of a subarachnoid hemorrhage are usually taken to the accident room of their local hospital however diagnosis is not always straightforward and patients are frequently sent home without further treatment only to become the victim of a damaging or fatal bleed some hours later. Emergency room doctors should be aware of the warning signs that precede a major bleed in the brain and should not ignore relatively minor symptoms which occur in about 50% of all patients. Failure to recognize the warning signs and give appropriate medical advice and treatment may be medical malpractice. The symptoms of a ruptured blood vessel in the brain include:
- severe localized headache
- fits
- collapse and unconsciousness
- stiff neck or neck pain
- nausea and vomiting
- blurred vision or double vision
- dilated pupils
- pain above and behind the eye
- loss of sensation
- sensitivity to light
There is a further area of potential negligence that needs to be considered which relates to treatment following accurate diagnosis of a brain hemorrhage, subsequent to admission to a hospital. It is frequently necessary to carry out intra-cranial surgery whereby the blood vessels are clipped or sealed. This surgery is difficult and challenging and only the most experienced neurosurgeons should carry out this operation. Any errors made at this stage may also give rise to a claim for damages for medical malpractice if the outcome of the operation is less satisfactory than it should have been.
In view of the serious nature of a brain hemorrhage, whereby over 50% of people die within minutes of haemorrhaging with a high proportion of the remainder subsequently suffering fatal consequences whilst many of the survivors have serious long term deficits, damages and compensation can be substantial. We can ensure that you to get the best representation by expert medical malpractice lawyers. We ensure that there is no guesswork in the choice of your attorney and that your claim is handled by the best person for the job anywhere in the country. Your claim will be dealt with on a contingency fees basis which means that your lawyer will not get paid unless he achieves settlement on your behalf. Our attorneys have a client centered approach and will focus entirely on your needs ensuring that you receive a complete professional service from lawyers who understand the particular difficulties of dealing with a medical malpractice legal case against doctors and their indemnity insurers. If you would like free advice without obligation from a specialist lawyer with a track record of many years successful claims settlements then just complete the contact form and a member of the American Association for Justice will telephone you at the first possible opportunity.