Syracuse Personal Injury Law Blog
Whether it is due to surgery or an accident, surgical staples are commonly used to close wounds. While staples can be vital to bringing the flesh and skin back together, they can result in serious injuries if they are not used properly. If you suspect that you have suffered harm due to a medical professional’s mistake in administering surgical staples, you may be entitled to compensation for your harm. At DeFrancisco & Falgiatano Personal Injury Lawyers, we can thoroughly examine the facts of your case and help you figure out your next steps.
Surgical staplers are medical devices that close skin wounds without the need for stitches. The staples are used instead of sutures to close skin wounds. In some cases, these staples can be used to hold together internal organs. Sadly, an estimated 8,000 to 9,000 incidents are reported to the Food and Drug Administration each year as a result of surgical stapler use. Approximately 9 percent of these reports indicated injuries, and less than 1 percent indicated deaths. At least 65 percent of injuries or deaths that occurred were results of surgical staples used in gastrointestinal surgeries, such as gastric bypass. In addition, 19 percent of surgical staple mistakes took place in lung surgeries, and other incidents happened in appendix, cardiac, and circulatory system surgeries.
Surgical staple injuries can take place in a number of ways, including:
- Staples misfiring;
- Stapler malfunction;
- Separation of suture lines;
- Staples not forming properly;
- Staplers sticking to the tissue of patients;
- Dirty staples being used; or
- Staples piercing or puncturing nerves, arteries, or veins.
Any and all of the issues listed above can lead to serious and long-term consequences for a patient, such as pain, bleeding, infection, and even organ failure. For example, if staples pop open, they could leave the victim with a large wound. This could also lead to oozing, leaking, and bacteria growth, which could cause serious infections.
If any of this sounds familiar, you may be able to recover compensation through a medical malpractice claim. Medical malpractice takes place when a health care provider breaches or violates the standard of care, causing an injury or death to a patient. The standard of care refers to the level of care and caution that a reasonably prudent health care provider in the same specialty would have used in the same or similar circumstances. As a result, the standard of care varies in each case.
Each state sets its own time limits for medical malpractice cases, and New York is no exception. Under New York law, a plaintiff has up to two and a half years to file a lawsuit in civil court. Failing to file within this time frame could mean losing your right to compensation altogether.
While stitches and staples are basic parts of health care, they can result in serious injuries when they are not done properly. At DeFrancisco & Falgiatano Personal Injury Lawyers, our diligent Syracuse surgery error attorneys have the knowledge base needed to represent your interests and make sure you obtain fair compensation for your injury. These cases can be complex, but we know how to handle them. For more information, call us at 833-200-2000 or contact us online.
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Plastic Surgery Malpractice in Syracuse and Across New York, Syracuse Personal Injury Blog, January 30, 2018