If you have lost a close one to the negligence of a healthcare provider in an aortic dissection case, one of the main steps you can take is to get to know the legal process to educate yourself about the condition first so you can paint a picture in every way of how things went down if there was any malpractice and the misdiagnosis that led to the wrongful death.
You need to get a right legal help for an aortic dissection lawsuit. An attorney specializing in misdiagnosed wrongful deaths can assist you in getting justice for both you and your close decedent.
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Understanding Aortic Dissection
The aorta is the largest artery in your body that carries oxygen-rich blood from your heart to the rest of your body. When there’s a tear inside your aorta, blood can rush into the tear, causing the middle and inner layers to split, called aortic dissection.
If the blood goes out of your aorta, it can stop the blood flow to the body parts, and the aorta can rupture completely, leading to death. This is a life-threatening, fatal condition.
Check eligibility and statute of limitations
If you’re a close family member to the decedent or financially dependent upon them, you can file the lawsuit. Check if the death was caused because of medical malpractice or negligence, or misdiagnosis.
Statutes of limitations can vary from 1 to 3 years, depending on the state, from the time the negligence or wrongful death occurred or was discovered.
Negligence of your healthcare provider
The common cause for wrongful death from aortic dissection is the negligence and misdiagnosis of the healthcare provider. Failing to recognize aortic dissection and wrongfully interpreting tests like CT, MRI, and echocardiograms, and mistaking it for heart conditions, can lead to death.
Be aware that timely diagnosis is crucial
Aortic dissection is a fatal condition that can get worse as time passes, because more delay leads to more severe internal bleeding, and the tear in the aorta can worsen. Without immediate diagnosis and surgery, the patient’s mortality risk can become higher.
Showing the evidence of this delay could emphasize that timely intervention could have prevented the death of your loved one.
Collect evidences
Gather every medical test and documentation that was performed. CT scans, MRIs, chest x-rays, and transesophageal echocardiograms are some of the common documents you might have in this situation.
These medical documents can demonstrate how aortic dissection was not discovered or considered and may have allowed the decedent to be rushed to surgery if the condition had been properly identified.
Seek compensation for the damages
One of the important steps is to hold the defendants accountable for their negligence, and you can seek legal compensation for your pain, loss, and suffering and economic damages like medical expenses, financial losses, future lost wages that could have been provided by your close one, and funeral costs.
Consult an experienced attorney
As soon as you become aware that you have lost a loved one to a wrongful death from the aortic dissection condition, hire a professional attorney who can guide you every step of the way.
