Stroke/Spinal Cord/Brain Injuries
Our central nervous system consists of the brain and spinal cord. It controls everything we do: how we think, our ability to remember names, places and events, our ability to solve problems, our ability to learn and our ability to walk, talk, run, work and play.
Since our central nervous system controls everything we do, an injury or damage can have disastrous consequences to the person involved as well as his or her family. Medical mistakes can result in everything from one-sided weakness to paraplegia or quadriplegia; it can cause a person to lose the ability to speak, or remember, or put them into a coma or vegetative state. The injuries can be so horrible that the injured person requires constant help 24 hours per day, every day, for the remainder of his/her life.
Medical malpractice often occurs when a doctor or hospital fails to recognize the signs of a stroke and therefore either fails to treat the patient properly or discharges the patient from their care by saying, “Call or return if your condition gets worse.” By then, it could well be too late. Many times, injuries could be avoided if treatment is started immediately. When dealing with strokes, there is a saying in the medical profession: TIME IS BRAIN. Very simply, that means the longer you wait to treat the condition, more and more damage occurs to the brain until the damage is often irreversible. Good medical practice requires EARLY DIAGNOSIS AND EARLY TREATMENT!! These conditions are emergencies.
Stroke – A stroke occurs when there is an interruption of blood flow to the brain. The brain, as well as the spinal cord, requires constant blood flow to provide oxygen and nourishment for our health and well-being. There are basically three types of strokes:
1) Ischemic Strokes. This is by far the most common type of stroke. It is caused by a clot within an artery that cuts off the blood supply to one or more vessels providing blood to the brain. The clot can be due to various reasons that include atherosclerosis (a build-up of plaque inside an artery that narrows and eventually cuts off the blood flow), or an embolus (usually plaque that breaks off from a different area in the body and travels through the blood stream until it gets stuck in a smaller artery and cuts off the blood supply). There is a short time window to avert disaster – treatment has to begin within three to four hours after the first symptoms start. Symptoms of ischemic stroke may include any of the following: numbness in the face, arm or leg, especially one-sided; sudden confusion or trouble speaking; sudden vision problems; or sudden difficulty walking or dizziness or loss of balance. Proper early treatment is imperative.
2) Hemorrhagic Strokes. While less common than ischemic strokes, it is nevertheless a very dangerous condition. It can be caused by an aneurysm (a weakening of a blood vessel wall that causes what looks like a small bubble or balloon in the vessel). If the aneurysm begins to leak, or bursts, it can cause tremendous damage to the brain. Hemorrhagic strokes can also be caused by a blood vessel within the brain that begins to leak, or it ruptures for no apparent reason. Such an event is called an intracranial bleed. At times a sharp blow to the head can cause bleeding within the brain or around the layers surrounding the brain (subdural hematoma). Symptoms of hemorrhagic stroke can range from a severe headache with no known cause to unconsciousness. Rapid and proper medical treatment is mandatory.
3) Transient Ischemic Attack (TIA). These are also called “mini strokes.” By definition, a TIA has the signs/symptoms of an ischemic stroke (above), but everything resolves, and the person appears and acts normal again within minutes to hours (the medical definition is a return to normal within 24 hours, but it usually resolves much sooner than that). It has been said that a TIA is a warning signal that you are about to have a stroke. Make no mistake—a TIA is a medical emergency. It must be distinguished from a full stroke. No one should wait and see what happens and treatment is necessary to make certain that a full stroke does not occur. The failure to properly diagnose and treat a TIA can lead to a full stroke with catastrophic consequences. This can occur within days to weeks of the initial TIA.
While the most common strokes involve the brain, as listed above, there are occasions when a stroke can occur to the spinal cord as well. At times, during surgeries for example, blood supply can be slowed or cut off to the spinal cord, or the peripheral nerves of the spinal cord, leading to partial or full paralysis of a limb, two limbs, or all four limbs.
Sanocki Newman & Turret, LLP attorneys have achieved verdicts and settlements that are related to injuries from a failure to promptly diagnose and treat a stroke, including a $4,700,000.00 settlement for a patient who suffered a stroke after the removal of a tumor in the pleural cavity (chest area) and a $2,870,000.00 verdict for a man who suffered an intracranial bleed that was not surgically treated in a prompt and timely fashion.
If you believe there was an injury as a result of medical malpractice, please contact our firm to discuss your case.