In healthcare, there are patient safety rules that must be followed to protect patients from unnecessary harm. The safety rules are called standards of care. Healthcare is usually provided by a team of healthcare professionals. An error by anyone can cause severe harm. If you or a loved one suffered from an injury to a kidney, our Grand Rapids injury lawyers can help.
Unrecognized or misdiagnosed kidney disease can put a patient in danger of loss of kidney function. If you believe this has happened to you, call our Michigan misdiagnosis lawyers at once. Examples of medical negligence causing kidney failure include:
Certain medical procedures, such as MRIs (magnetic resonance imaging), CT scans, and other radiology studies use a contrast dye (fluid) to more clearly see blood vessels on an X-ray. These dyes, which are typically injected into the vein before a procedure, are part of radiology studies. The dye used in medical procedures accounts for 12% of hospital kidney failure. The injury is called contrast-induced nephropathy. In patients with risk factors, such as high blood pressure (i.e., hypertension), heart disease (i.e., cardiovascular disease), diabetes, or existing kidney disease, the chance of kidney failure can be 20 to 50%.
Being given the wrong medication can cause serious harm and even death. In one case, the nurse gave the patient ten times the vitamin D prescribed, and the overdose destroyed his kidneys. If you have had any medical complications due to your medication, call our medication error lawyers in Michigan today.
Patients with high blood pressure or diabetes require regular treatment and close monitoring to keep them safe. Healthcare failure to monitor and treat the conditions at appropriate intervals violates patient safety rules. For a diabetic patient with high blood pressure, a doctor’s failure to prescribe medication for high blood pressure needlessly endangers the kidneys.
High blood pressure strains the heart and can damage blood vessels. If blood vessels to the kidney are damaged, the kidney will not work and may lose function. In the U.S., high blood pressure causes over 25,000 new cases of kidney failure each year. Kidney damage can be prevented with proper treatment and follow-up.
Symptoms of kidney disease can be subtle. A doctor’s failure to recognize or understand symptoms can deny a patient treatment. If appropriately caught and treated, the progression of kidney disease can be slowed and kidney failure prevented.
Under patient safety rules, healthcare professionals must order testing and provide patient information and referrals for abnormal test results. If a healthcare professional fails to order a blood testing or fails to follow up on an abnormal result, it is medical malpractice. Contact a Michigan medical malpractice lawyer if this has happened to you.
Hydroxyethyl starch is an intravenous (IV) solution given to patients to treat and prevent shock after blood loss from a trauma or surgery. Studies have found it increases the risk for acute kidney injury and death.
The Michigan medical malpractice lawyers at Buchanan Firm can help you recover compensation if another’s negligence caused your injury. To learn more about how our team of med mal attorneys can help, contact us. For more information on kidney disease, including the signs and symptoms of kidney disease and kidney failure, available treatment options, and the most up-to-date news and information please visit:
The National Kidney Foundation
The Kidney & Urology Foundation of America, Inc.
Also, the US Department of Health and Human Services has a website dedicated to providing the most recent research in kidney disease:
National Kidney and Urologic Diseases Information Clearinghouse