Can Anesthesia Errors Cause Permanent Brain Damage?

Anesthesia is used to keep patients comfortable and safe during surgery and other medical procedures, but mistakes involving anesthesia can have serious consequences. At Parham Smith & Archenhold, LLC, our medical malpractice attorneys in Greenville help injured patients and their families understand their options after a healthcare provider’s negligence.

Anesthesia Errors and Brain Damage

Anesthesia requires careful planning, administration, and monitoring throughout a medical procedure. To safely administer anesthesia, healthcare professionals must consider a patient’s medical history, medications, allergies, risk factors, and other relevant information. They must also monitor vital signs and respond appropriately to changes during the procedure.

When these responsibilities are not handled properly, a patient may experience complications that can prevent sufficient oxygen from reaching the brain. Depending on the circumstances, this can result in temporary impairment, permanent neurological damage, or other serious injuries. Examples of anesthesia-related negligence may include:

• Administering too much or too little anesthesia

• Failing to monitor oxygen levels, blood pressure, heart rate, or other vital signs

• Failing to recognize or respond to signs of oxygen deprivation

• Giving a medication that interacts dangerously with another medication

• Failing to review a patient’s allergies or medical history

• Improperly managing a patient’s airway

• Failing to respond promptly to an anesthesia complication

• Failing to properly monitor a patient during recovery

However, anesthesia complications do not automatically establish medical malpractice. Parham Smith & Archenhold, LLC, can review the circumstances of your case and help determine what evidence may be necessary to establish a claim.

South Carolina Law and Anesthesia Malpractice Claims

To establish a medical malpractice claim involving an anesthesia error, you generally must prove four key elements:

1. A doctor-patient relationship existed. You must establish that your healthcare provider owed you a duty to provide care consistent with the applicable medical standard.

2. The healthcare provider breached the standard of care. You must show that your provider failed to act as a reasonably prudent healthcare professional would have under similar circumstances. This could involve improper anesthesia administration, inadequate monitoring, or failing to respond to a developing complication.

3. The breach caused the injury. It is not enough to show that an anesthesia error occurred. The evidence must connect your provider’s negligent conduct to the patient’s brain damage or other injuries.

4. You suffered damages. You must have experienced actual harm that may support compensation, such as medical expenses, lost income, rehabilitation costs, pain and suffering, permanent disability, loss of enjoyment of life, or other losses. 

Gathering as much evidence as possible can help support your claim of negligence and increase your chances of a successful case.

Start Your Case With Our Greenville Medical Malpractice Lawyers

Sustaining injuries due to the negligent conduct of a healthcare professional can be detrimental to a victim’s livelihood and well-being. Trying to start a legal case on top of your physical recovery may seem impossible, but you do not have to do it alone. A Greenville medical malpractice lawyer from Parham Smith & Archenhold, LLC, can help you navigate the complexities of your case. Contact our team today online or by calling 864-242-9008. We offer free case evaluations to new clients living in Greenville and surrounding areas in South Carolina.