Lubbock County Texas Medical Malpractice Law Blog

Some patients in Texas may be aware of the increased use of electronic health records by health care providers. EHRs are quickly replacing the paper medical charts in hospitals and doctor offices throughout the county.

These electronic records have their advantages. Like other computerized systems, they can retain a large volume of patient information and are easily accessible by medical providers. Information can be added quickly and accurately in real time. In addition, electronic records are easily transportable from provider to provider.

Approximately one in every 5,500 surgeries involves a retained surgical instrument. In other words, the patient has a medical device or item accidentally left behind in them after the procedure. Approximately 70 percent of these surgical devices are sponges. While a sponge or a surgical screw doesn't have a large monetary value for a Texas hospital, the price of a medical mistake can be enormous. The costs per each case of a retained surgical device averages $600,000 in damages and legal fees. The annual costs across the nation are estimated to be $2.4 billion.

Because of the high cost, medical device equipment manufacturers are developing technology to help reduce the number of retained devices during surgery. One of these technologies involves embedding an identification barcode into each sponge. This helps track how many were used during the surgery and if any surgical devices were retained within the body cavity. Many hospitals and health care facilities already have policies where nurses and surgeons count the number of devices used before and after surgery. Unfortunately, human errors still occur with this method. In approximately 88 percent of the cases of surgical device retention, the devices were counted out loud.

Hereditary disorders with neurological effects can be medically devastating, but many times people with these disorders need to wait long periods before receiving an effective diagnosis. Two such illnesses include Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, or CMT, and familial amyloid polyneuropathy, or FAP. Both disorders often have an onset around the age of 20, and they can sometimes be confused for one another. A proper diagnosis is critical in order to provide the correct treatment that can significantly improve patients' quality of life.

FAP can appear in a patient's early 20s, but some cases begin later in life in a person's 30s or even 50s. A protein called amyloid deposits in abnormal locations in a person's body, causing nerves related to sensation and movement to deteriorate. These amyloid deposits can interfere with the nerves that regulate heart function as well as urinary and digestive systems. The disorder can lead to heart failure and even death. Research indicates that the genetically linked disorder is caused by a mutation in the TTR gene.

Texas readers may have heard that ovarian cancer is a "silent killer." This is because the disease can mimic other medical conditions and tends to be diagnosed in its later stages.

Over 250,000 women are diagnosed with ovarian cancer worldwide each year, and around 140,000 succumb to the disease. However, by learning to recognize early warning signs, women could increase their chances of survival. According to medical experts, ovarian cancer symptoms are frequently mistaken for other less serious medical conditions. These symptoms include belly discomfort, bloating, feeling full quickly, nausea, indigestion, the frequent need to urinate, back pain and shortness of breath. Experts say women who experience these symptoms for over a week should contact their doctor and specifically ask about ovarian issues.