Delay in diagnosing a spinal injury can have catastrophic and life-changing consequences for a patient.
When someone suffers an injury to their lumbar spine it is essential for medical practitioners to act swiftly, and this starts with accurately identifying the nature of the injury at an early stage.
Failure to diagnose a spinal injury can result in the patient’s condition deteriorating. This can include the development of a spinal abscess caused by infection, deterioration or herniation of a disc, or the development of a spinal haematoma.
Early diagnosis allows early treatment, and this is crucial when the prospects of the treatment succeeding diminish with time.
In many cases diagnosis of a spinal injury will be straightforward, but that is not always the case, and medical practitioners need to be alert to the signs of a spinal injury in situations where such a condition might not be immediately obvious. When a hospital or doctor is at fault for delay in diagnosing a spinal injury then the patient may be entitled to bring a compensation claim for medical negligence.
One situation where late diagnosis of a spinal injury can occur is when a patient attends hospital with symptoms of cauda equina syndrome. You can read here how our specialist medical negligence team succeeded in recovering substantial compensation for a Devon woman who sadly suffered permanent injury as a result of her local hospital failing to correctly diagnose that she was suffering from cauda equina.
If you or a loved one have been the victim of delay in diagnosing a spinal injury and would like guidance on making a medical negligence claim then get in touch with our experienced lawyers today for a free case review and details of No Win, No Fee funding.
