Local Law Firms Home > Medical Malpractice Overview > Surgical Mistakes > Unnecessary Surgery The fear, cost, pain, and other things that are associated with surgery are nothing that anyone looks forward to. With the exception of elective surgery, such as cosmetic enhancements, surgery is needed for patients in order to have their best shot (in some cases, the only shot) at a full, or at least partial recovery. When a doctor has made mistake, however, and performs surgery on a patient only to find out later it was completely unneeded, medical malpractice may result.
One example of an unnecessary surgery would be a patient being told he or she needs a heart transplant. This might be based on a variety of tests. Later, the patient may discover that the tests were misinterpreted or switched with another patient’s. The patient now received a new heart when it was completely unnecessary—when everything was perfectly fine with their original one. Although this is a very extreme case and rare, it does happen and is completely unacceptable. Did you know? |