An ectopic pregnancy is an unwelcome occurrence for expecting mothers. It can result in debilitating consequences; the most common result is a miscarriage, but if the incidence is not caught in time, severe injuries may arise. It is the responsibility of your doctor to notice any potential problems with your pregnancy if you have any complaints of pain or discomfort. If a doctor does not diagnose an ectopic pregnancy and you suffer damages as a result, you could sue for medical malpractice with the help of one of our experienced attorneys in Los Angeles. Normandie Law Firm has a host of expert attorneys willing to help you through your medical malpractice lawsuit and ensure that you get the necessary compensation for the failure to diagnose your ectopic pregnancy. Clients often come to us with questions about such claims, some examples of are:
- Can I sue the hospital for wrongful diagnosis of ectopic pregnancy?
- Can I sue the ER for wrongfully diagnosis ectopic pregnancy?
- Can I sue urgent care for a missed diagnosis of ectopic pregnancy?
- Can I sue OBGYN for a wrongful diagnosis of ectopic pregnancy?
- Can I sue obstetrician for miss-diagnosis of ectopic pregnancy?
Ectopic Pregnancy Information
During pregnancy, the egg is intended to latch onto the lining of the uterus to grow and gestate. Through this connection, the baby grows over a period of nine months. When the egg is not affixed to the lining, it is usually released from the body in the form of a miscarriage. Although there are numerous reasons for miscarriages, ectopic pregnancies are among the leading causes. An egg that affixes itself to the lining inside the fallopian tube cannot grow; there is not enough room in the tube, and the mother will experience extreme pain and injuries. The egg may begin to grow in other places as well, including the cervix, the abdomen, or potentially even a C-section scar. Ectopic pregnancies happen during about 1 in 80 fertilizations, but because of advances in technology and healthcare, deaths and permanent injuries resulting from the problem are rare.
The indicators of an ectopic pregnancy include:
- Intense pelvic or abdominal pain
- Pelvic cramping, especially on one side in particular, which can indicate the presence of a problem with the fallopian tube
- Intense vaginal bleeding or spotting
- Pain in the lower back
- Feelings of dizziness, faintness, or lightheadedness
- Low blood pressure
- Pain during urination or passing stool
There are any number of reasons that an ectopic pregnancy could have occurred, ranging from tobacco use and sexually transmitted diseases to pelvic inflammatory disease and a previous ectopic pregnancy. In order for your doctor to detect the ectopic pregnancy, he will have to examine the pelvic and abdominal regions for any growths or tenderness, conduct a blood test to examine your hormone levels, or conduct an ultrasound to determine where the egg is located. Treatment will then generally focus on removing the egg from the fallopian tube; there is effectively no way to keep the egg or transfer it to the uterus to continue growth. The methods include taking a medication, methotrexate, which will reabsorb the embryo, or a laparoscopy, which will result in a doctor removing the embryo by hand through surgical means.
If your ectopic pregnancy is not treated, the fallopian tube can rupture, causing internal bleeding and hemorrhage, infertility, future ectopic pregnancies, and more. The amount of internal bleeding can lead to death if not treated promptly.
For more help, call our Los Angeles offices to speak with an attorney for miss-diagnosis of ectopic pregnancy.
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Failure to Diagnose Ectopic Pregnancy
Your doctor has a responsibility to care for you throughout your pregnancy. He must diagnose you with any potential problems, and if he is negligent in his duties, you could suffer life-threatening problems from an ectopic pregnancy.
Many doctors may simply attribute the symptoms of ectopic pregnancies to regular aches and pains and complications of being with child. They may not correctly read blood tests or be aware that an ultrasound is picking up the location of an egg in the wrong spot. This kind of error can result in any number of injuries, including lasting damages after surgery if the pregnancy was discovered late, such as continued and constant pain, excessive scar tissue, infection, and more. Essentially, if you exhibited symptoms of an ectopic pregnancy but no tests were administered, another condition were diagnosed, treatment was delayed, or there were complications in the treatment, you would have grounds for a medical malpractice lawsuit.
Thus, you may be able to sue if you suffered a failed pregnancy due to missed diagnosis of ectopic pregnancy. In order for you to file a lawsuit, you must be able to prove that your doctor was negligent. To do so, you must show that there was a doctor/patient relationship that existed between the two of you, that the doctor breached his duty to protect and provide care for you, that the breach led to an incident or accident concerning your pregnancy, and that you suffered actual physical harm because of the complications. The responsible doctor can be an obstetrician, gynecologist, doctor in a hospital, and others.
If you suffered an abortion due to wrongful diagnosis of ectopic pregnancy or a miscarriage due to wrongful diagnosis of ectopic pregnancy, you should look into filing a medical malpractice claim against the responsible doctor or hospital.
The basis of your lawsuit will be focused around the duty of care that was supposed to be provided to you and, ultimately, was not. An attorney with experience in ectopic pregnancy lawsuits can help you file a lawsuit for wrongful diagnosis of ectopic pregnancy.
Statute of Limitations for Ectopic Pregnancy Lawsuit
If you intend to file a medical malpractice claim against the doctor responsible for misdiagnosing your ectopic pregnancy, you should be aware of the time limit you have to take legal action. The statute of limitations is one year from the discovery of the injury or three years from the injury itself. This means that you have to act relatively quickly or else you won’t be able to receive anything.
There are a few exceptions to this rule, however; if you were underage at the time of the incident or if you were physically or mentally unable to file a claim, the statute of limitations would not begin until you were of legal age or you returned to your normal state of mind. For example, you may experience complications from the pregnancy for a while after treatment has been finished, which can result in fair restitution.
Kaiser Permanente
Kaiser Permanente has 39 hospitals located in California. The facilities are medical facilities that provide medical care to patients in the community. It has been recognized with many awards for clinically effective quality of care for the patients. Even a hospital with a high community award standing can miss a diagnosis for an illness. When this happens, there may be a claim of medical negligence whereby the doctors and clinical staff will be responsible for the results of this type of medical mistake.
Ectopic Pregnancy Misdiagnosis
An ectopic pregnancy is life-threatening for pregnant women, and will more than likely end in the termination of the pregnancy. An ectopic pregnancy is an extrauterine pregnancy that occurs when the embryo implants itself outside of the normal uterine area of the pregnant woman’s body. If a fetus is not implanted in the uterus properly, it cannot grow outside of that area safely. There is no way for a fetus to enjoy the benefits of the nutrients available by nature in the woman’s uterus. If a fetus spontaneously implants itself outside of the normal area of the uterus, the fetus will spontaneously abort itself, or will rupture the walls of the uterus in the process of growing in many cases. Many fetuses have become an ectopic pregnancy by implanting itself in the woman’s fallopian tube, which will cause anatomical tube damage to the woman.
Many Times There Are Varying Symptoms to an Ectopic Pregnancy
The diagnosis for an ectopic pregnancy needs to be carefully identified and considered, because there are varying symptoms for the ectopic pregnancy. Some of the symptoms include:
- Amenorrhoea
- Bleeding
- Abdomen pain
- Vomiting and nausea
- Joint pain
- Pain in the shoulder
- Fainting episodes
- Hypotension
- Cervical motion tenderness
- Palpable adnexal mass
- Asymptomatic (no symptoms at all)
An Ectopic Pregnancy Has High Risk Factors
An ectopic pregnancy has high risk factors that can be seen in the woman’s prior medical history. These risk factors include:
- Infertility
- Ovulation induction
- IUI
- IVF-ET
- Tubectomy
- Past ectopic pregnancy
- History of abortion
- History of PID
- Myomectomy
- Tuboplasty
- Appendectomy
Testing for an Ectopic Pregnancy
A urine test can check for an ectopic pregnancy, but there are times that the urine pregnancy test will come out negative. Additionally, a sonography test will also be inconsistent and not accurate in these situations as well. It may be necessary to utilize transvaginal ultrasound findings to find out if the woman has:
- Empty uterine cavity
- Intrauterine pregnancy
- Pseudosac
- Live extrauterine fetus
- Isolated POD fluid
- Intra-abdominal fluid present
- Ovarian cyst present
- Complex adnexal mass present
- Fibroid present
Treatments for an Ectopic Pregnancy
A surgical treatment is the primary tool for managing an ectopic pregnancy. Once the ectopic pregnancy is identified, it is necessary to treat it immediately to save the life of the woman. It is necessary to closely monitor the woman during the treatment, to help prevent a rupture of the fallopian tubes. Women can die from an untreated ectopic pregnancy, and their future ability to bear a child will be jeopardized, depending on the success or failure of the treatment. The surgical treatments for an ectopic pregnancy are a combination of the following:
- Medical and drug treatments
- Laparotomy
- Laparoscopy
- Salpingectomy
- Milking of the tube
- Diagnostic laparoscopy
If you have experienced an ectopic pregnancy that was misdiagnosed or undiagnosed, you need to call our law office immediately for a consultation.
Compensation from Failure to Diagnose Ectopic Pregnancy Lawsuit
Because medical malpractice claims are a form of personal injury lawsuits, you will have to prove that you were physically harmed in the incident. You will be entitled to various types of compensation if you win your case; the insurance agent representing the doctor or the hospital will make an offer based on numerous factors, such as the impact the injury had on your life and career opportunities, the lasting effect of the damages, the amount of property destroyed, and more.
Some of the compensation you can earn includes:
- Medical expenses, including surgery costs, medication fees, hospitalization costs, treatment fees, physical therapy sessions, and more. You ay also receive coverage for future medical procedures that will be necessary.
- Lost income due to missed days at work, as well as additional lost wages that will happen because of recovery time or other medical treatments.
- Property damage, if anything you owned suffered damage or was lost because of the malpractice.
- Pain and suffering damages, which are emotional damages covering PTSD, fear, anxiety, psychological trauma, emotional stress, and more. Keep in mind that there is a cap of $250,000 that you can earn for pain and suffering damages, while there is no ceiling on the amount of medical expenses that can be covered.
In the event that a family member or loved one passes away due to complications from an ectopic pregnancy, you could file a wrongful death lawsuit. This will allow you to recover funeral and burial expenses, loss of consortium, loss of expected savings and inheritance, pre-death medical bills and pain and suffering, and more.
An experienced lawyer for missed diagnosis of ectopic pregnancy can help earn the maximum compensation available for you under the law.
Normandie: Here for Mothers and Families
If you suffered a loss of pregnancy due to wrongful diagnosis of ectopic pregnancy or a loss of fetus due to missed diagnosis of ectopic pregnancy, you may be entitled to compensation from the responsible doctor or hospital. We can help you receive the restitution you deserve. Our team of lawyers is empathetic and understands how problematic such a devastating loss can be, and we will aggressively pursue the damages you deserve. We have years of experience handling medical malpractice cases, and if necessary, we will take your case to court to support your rights as a victim and patient.
Call us today to schedule a free consultation with an ectopic pregnancy lawsuit lawyer. If you have questions about the complications from the incident or want to know more about the laws surrounding medical malpractice claims, we will happily provide you with the answers. We will also help you determine the value of your case and tell you what we believe we can earn for you. All of our consultations are completely confidential, and none of your private details will be leaked anywhere. Your information is safe with us, and we will help you pick the best option for yourself and your family.
If you select us to represent you, you will receive our zero fee guarantee, which promises that you will not have to pay any out of pocket expenses for our services. We will only get paid if we win your case; the fees will come from the settlement we bring you as a percentage, so the responsible hospital will essentially cover your legal bills and your additional damages. If we lose your case, you won’t have to worry about paying us anything whatsoever. We will eat the costs of the case and you can walk away owing us no money whatsoever.
If you’re searching for a law firm for failure to diagnose ectopic pregnancy, look no further than Normandie Law Firm.
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