Brain ischemia occurs when the brain does not receive enough blood because of an obstruction. This kind of medical emergency can be frightening and overwhelming to deal with, as it is life-threatening and could have serious repercussions for months or years to come if not treated in time.
If you or your child developed brain ischemia due to medical malpractice of a birth injury, and you are interested in exploring your legal options, call Pintas & Mullins Law Firm at 800-794-0444 to learn how a Los Angeles brain ischemia lawyer can help you pursue justice.
Understanding Brain Ischemia
According to Neural Regeneration Research (NRR), brain (or cerebral) ischemia, is the fifth leading cause of disability and death in the United States. Brain ischemia often results in a stroke and affects nearly 800,000 people every year in the United States.
When blood vessels develop a blood clot or rupture because of a malformation or an aneurysm, blood cannot reach the brain effectively, which causes a stroke. While there are two different types of stroke, ischemic is the more common of the two, affecting 87% of stroke victims. When a blood vessel fails to appropriately supply oxygen to the brain, serious neurological damage can occur, or a victim could die.
Medical Malpractice and Brain Ischemia
The severity of a stroke resulting from brain ischemia is primarily determined by the speech, and the medical community can diagnose, respond, and treat the stroke. Because brain ischemia inherently involves the blockage of blood flow to the brain, the longer it takes to remove this blockage, the more serious the damage is for the patient.
Failure to Recognize and Diagnose
Unfortunately, many errors occur when a healthcare provider fails to properly recognize and diagnose (and therefore appropriately treat) brain ischemia and stroke.
According to Neurology Today, nearly 10% of all strokes receive a misdiagnosis in emergency rooms throughout the United States, and a stroke is the fourth most commonly misdiagnosed medical condition. Because of the severity of the consequences related to brain ischemia, any doctor or medical professional that fails to appropriately diagnose brain ischemia or stroke could have committed medical malpractice.
All medical professionals should understand that they need to look for symptoms of stroke, commonly known under the FAST acronym:
- (F)acial drooping – Inability to smile or move muscles around the mouth
- (A)rm weakness – Inability to keep arms lifted
- (S)peech challenges – Inability to speak normally
- (T)ime – Time is of the essence if any of the aforementioned symptoms are present to address a possible stroke related to brain ischemia
Failure to Order Appropriate Diagnostic Tests
If any of the symptoms listed above occur in a patient, a doctor should immediately suspect a stroke and order the appropriate diagnostic tests, which may include a CT scan to confirm the suspicion and make an accurate diagnosis. If you feel your emergency room doctor did not properly order testing in your case of stroke or brain ischemia, which resulted in additional medical complications, you may have the legal right to pursue compensation for your injuries and losses.
Learn how a Los Angeles brain ischemia lawyer at Pintas & Mullins Law Firm can help you with your next steps. We can hear the specifics of your case during a free evaluation. Call us today.
Failure to Provide Proper Immediate Treatment
In many cases, when diagnosed appropriately, a patient suffering from an ischemic stroke will receive a medication known as tissue plasminogen activator (tPA). tPA, also known as alteplase (Activase), is the gold standard by which the medical community treats an ischemic stroke.
If a doctor injects this drug through a vein in the patient’s arm within 4.5 hours from when the symptoms of an ischemic stroke first begin, the chances of survival and reduction of complications both increase dramatically. Because tPA dissolves a blot clot that caused the stroke, it will restore blood flow to the brain. Again, the failure to provide this immediate treatment to a patient can result in permanent and severe consequences or even death.
Failure to Ensure Proper Follow Up Treatment
In many cases, an emergency room visit is just the beginning of the medical journey for a patient suffering from brain ischemia and stroke. An emergency room doctor must not only correctly diagnose a stroke, order appropriate tests, and provide immediate treatment, but the doctor must also impart to the patient how serious it is that they receive follow-up testing and treatment.
An emergency room is only able to handle acute medical injuries and conditions. Therefore, it is the duty and responsibility of the emergency room staff to clearly indicate to the patient that a failure to inform a patient that they must have a follow-up visit and testing with their primary care doctor or medical specialist could lead to additional medical complications or even death.
For a free legal consultation with a Brain Ischemia Lawyer serving Los Angeles, call (800) 794-0444
Proving Medical Malpractice Due to Brain Ischemia
If your doctor or medical provider failed to meet the established medical community’s standard of care for brain ischemia and ischemic stroke regarding diagnosis, diagnostic testing, or treatment, you might have the right to pursue justice for your injuries and losses.
To prove medical malpractice, you must show that the doctor, nurse, hospital, or other medical professional failed to follow medical industry standards of care, which resulted in direct harm or injury to you. Medical malpractice cases require a victim to prove:
- A doctor-patient relationship did occur
- The medical professional had a duty of care toward a patient
- The medical professional failed in their duty of care due to negligence
- The patient’s injuries were a direct result of that negligence
If you are interested in filing a medical malpractice lawsuit, you have a limited time to do so in California. It is outlined in California Code of Civil Procedure (CCP) § 340.5 that the statute of limitations to file a medical malpractice lawsuit in the state is three years from the date of injury or one year from the date when the plaintiff discovered or should have discovered the injury, whichever comes first.
The sooner you call us to start the review of your case, the sooner we can start building a solid case for you and have the proper amount of time to do it and file your lawsuit on time.
Los Angeles Brain Ischemia Lawyer Near Me (800) 794-0444
Consider How a Los Angeles Brain Ischemia Lawyer Can Help You
Not every emergency room doctor can save every patient. However, doctors, nurses, and medical professionals have a duty and responsibility to ensure they provide appropriate levels of care accepted by the medical community.
If you have suffered any injuries or harm, or if a loved one has died, as a result of medical negligence related to the misdiagnosis or mistreatment of brain ischemia or stroke, learn how a Los Angeles brain ischemia lawyer at Pintas & Mullins Law Firm can help you. Call us now at 800-794-0444 for a free case evaluation. We can discuss the specifics of your case and help you understand how to pursue a medical malpractice lawsuit.
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