Sometimes mistakenly called blood poisoning, sepsis is a life-threatening condition that occurs when the human body responds to infection or harmful germs in blood or other tissues. Sepsis requires early detection and treatment for survival.
Unless timely treated, sepsis can cause organ damage and death. Almost any infection may lead to sepsis, including the flu, pneumonia, or a urinary tract infection. Even a splinter from a piece of wood or scrape on an asphalt surface may lead to sepsis.
Children and the elderly are the most likely to develop sepsis. Also, more at risk are people who have a chronic health condition like diabetes, cancer, or lung or kidney disease.
Many patients enter health care facilities such as hospitals and nursing homes with pre-existing infections. These infections can lead to sepsis if they are undiagnosed, misdiagnosed, and, as a result, untreated or improperly treated. Also, patients may develop hospital-acquired infections (HAIs), which are a common type of infection leading to sepsis. An experienced medical malpractice attorney and a team of medical experts can help determine if sepsis resulted from a negligent act of the hospital or medical facility.
These hospital or healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) include catheter-associated urinary tract infections, central line-associated bloodstream infections, and ventilator-associated pneumonia. Infections may also occur at surgery sites, known as surgical site infections. Infections can be associated with the devices used in medical procedures, such as catheters or ventilators.
Negligence by a healthcare organization or individual care worker may lead to a patient contracting a healthcare-associated infection. Some examples of negligence that may cause an HAI are as follows:
Oftentimes, sepsis is not diagnosed early enough. Medical professionals may be negligent if they do not properly examine and diagnose a patient exhibiting symptoms of sepsis. Most HAIs that develop into sepsis are often found to be preventable.
Sepsis and septic shock can result from an infection anywhere in the body. One-third of people who develop sepsis die, but those who survive often suffer life-changing effects, such as chronic pain, chronic fatigue, organ dysfunction, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and amputations.
An experienced medical malpractice attorney and a team of medical experts may establish if preventable mistakes were made when you or your loved one was treated in a healthcare facility. Powell Law attorney, James F. Mundy, Esq., has decades of experience in legal matters involving medical errors and defective medical devices. If you or your loved one developed sepsis, severe sepsis, or septic shock after this treatment, you have a right to compensation for your injuries.
For most of the last century and well into the current one, Powell Law has held medical professionals accountable for their medical errors as it has litigated and settled countless medical malpractice cases. Powell Law lawyers have vast experience representing those affected by medical negligence. Contact Powell Law at (570) 961-0777. The consultation is FREE, and you don’t pay anything unless we win.
