Generally, a podiatrist is a limited-license practitioner who, depending on the scope of practice recognized by the podiatrist's home state, can treat medical problems associated with the foot, ankle and/or leg. Depending on their training, podiatrists might perform any one of several medical services, ranging from the treatment of nail ... More

A dental abscess is an infection of the face, jaw, throat or mouth that begins as a tooth infection or cavity. Dental abscesses and infections can result from poor personal hygiene or lack of timely dental care. A common medical malpractice issue in dentistry can result when a dentist fails ... More

Erb's Palsy is a birth complication resulting from an infant's shoulder bone becoming trapped behind the mother's pubic bone during birth. This complication, also known as shoulder dystocia, causes intense pressure on the nerves in the infant's arm. As such, the infant may suffer from a condition called Erb's Palsy, ... More

High profile personal injury lawsuits have left many with the impression that juries systematically award multi-million dollar awards in order to punish wrongdoers.  Although juries may, and frequently do decide to make such awards, most states have restrictions (caps) on the amount of such awards, resulting in the reduction of ... More

Many medical procedures and surgeries require anesthesia to be administered to the patient. Use of anesthesia is a medical method of managing or preventing pain through administration of an anesthetic, controlled by an anesthesiologist or certified nurse anesthetist. Anesthesia is inherently dangerous by virtue of the fact that dulling or eliminating pain ... More

When a doctor or other health care provider engages in conduct (or fails to take action) that results in a patient's injury or death, the patient and/or family may have a medical malpractice claim. Most cases are based upon a theory of negligence: that the care provided failed to meet required ... More

Medical malpractice lawsuits are usually based upon a claim that a health care provider was negligent. To establish negligence, the plaintiff must prove the practitioner's actions fell below the accepted standard of care, i.e., the degree of care a reasonable, similarly qualified health care provider would have provided under the ... More

In late 1999, the Institute of Medicine issued a report regarding medical errors in United States hospitals. The report concluded that every year, as many as one million hospital patients are injured and 98,000 die as a result of preventable medical errors, costing the nation an estimated $40 billion annually. ... More

In 1999, it was reported that over 98,000 preventable deaths occurred in hospitals each year.  To combat the prevalence of such errors, in 2000, the Business Roundtable, a consortium of CEOs from large U.S. corporations, organized the Leapfrog Group. Today, Leapfrog consists of more than 150 large ... More

Dentists and oral surgeons are expected to provide a standard of care that other competent and reasonable dentists and oral surgeons would provide under the same or like circumstances.  When they fail to do so, they may be held liable for damages resulting from their treatment.  One injury that may ... More

Some state medical malpractice laws granted patients the right to sue their Health Management Organizations (HMOs) for actions which injured them. As a result of their active roles in medical care decisions, HMOs have been held liable for medical malpractice in state court for negligently administering health care benefits. However, ... More

When a fetus in utero cannot receive oxygen or blood, the baby is said to be in fetal distress. If a physician does not promptly and correctly remedy the situation, the fetus could suffer permanent brain damage or death. Parents in this situation may have a medical malpractice claim. There ... More

A nosocomial infection, or hospital-acquired infection, is an infection that was contracted in a hospital. Such infections can be the result of many different factors including poorly sterilized equipment, defective equipment design (not allowing for proper cleaning) or hospital staff negligence. As with any medical malpractice claim, several aspects must ... More

In order to bring a successful medical malpractice claim, the injured party must show that the treating health care professional departed from accepted standards of practice and that such actions or failure to act caused the patient's injury or death. As medical practice standards are set by members of the ... More

Res ipsa loquitur is a legal doctrine that infers negligence in a situation that lacks direct evidence of wrongdoing. Translated from Latin, res ipsa loquitur means, "the thing speaks for itself." When res ipsa loquitur is applied to a claim, evidence must be produced from which a jury would decide ... More

One of the most important aspects of a doctor-patient relationship is open communication. Withholding information on either side may impair that relationship. A study by the American Medical Association (AMA), released in July 2003, revealed that as many as one in three doctors withholds information from patients about medical ... More

Group B Strep (GBS) is a bacterial infection that infants can acquire from their mothers during labor and delivery. As GBS symptoms are fairly obvious and can be prevented in newborns by the administration of antibiotics to the mother at the onset of labor, health care providers who fail to ... More

Since 1951, the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO), an independent non-profit organization, has participated in United States health care issues. Today, JCAHO actively evaluates and accredits more than 15,000 health care organizations and health related programs and is recognized as the primary accrediting and standard-setting ... More

Cardiological specialists are required to adhere to a strict standard of care in diagnosis and treatment. If a specialist deviates from the standard of care and, as a result, a cardiac patient suffers an injury, then the specialist must assume the consequences of such injury. Types of Cardiological SpecialistsThere are ... More

Dental malpractice is medical malpractice for an injury due to negligent dental work or failure to notice or diagnose possible precarious oral conditions. If a dentist fails to meet the standards of care accepted by the profession, either purposely or due to incompetence, he may be subject to dental malpractice ... More

Laser eye correction was once dubbed the new "miracle" eye surgery, promising a painless vision correction surgery. Now there are thousands of lawsuits filed each year for medical malpractice claims regarding laser eye procedures. However, laser eye correction is still the most common surgical procedure in the United States, with ... More

A person alleging that they would have rather not been born, than be born with a genetic defect or disability, may bring a wrongful life lawsuit against the treating physician. When parents have the same sentiment regarding the birth of their child and want to pursue legal action, their claim ... More

The amount of medical malpractice claims arising out of prenatal care and procedures has recently increased dramatically. Since applicable laws and regulations of such claims vary significantly by state, such distinctions should be taken into consideration.Many commentators divide these malpractice claims into three categories:"Wrongful Birth" – the parents sue the ... More

A bronchoscope is a medical tool consisting of a tube equipped with a camera, used by doctors to diagnose lung cancer and other lung infections. Bronchoscopy procedures are very common in the United States. However, thousands of bronchoscopes have been recalled by manufacturers, and people who have suffered injuries as ... More

The failure to make a diagnosis or identify cancer is the most frequent medical malpractice claim in the United States. Prostate cancer is the most common nondermatologic cancer, as well as the second most common cause of death from cancer in men. Nearly 200,000 cases are diagnosed in the U.S. ... More

Cerebral Palsy is a birth complication resulting from oxygen deprivation during pregnancy, labor or delivery that affects movement control and muscle condition. Cerebral Palsy occurs in approximately two to four babies out of every 1,000 births in the United States. Oxygen deprivation is often a result of medical negligence. There is ... More

Medical malpractice usually involves negligence on the part of a health care professional. As professionals, health care providers, e.g., doctors, surgeons, and nurses, are held to a standard of care for the services they provide. This standard typically consists of what a comparable, reasonable professional would do under ... More