Failure to Diagnosis Appendicitis Leading to Severe Infection and Bowel Adhesions
Client
Appendicitis Patient
Compensation Paid
Client Confidential
Category
Medical Negligence
Our Client instructed Clarity in relation to a failure to diagnose an appendicitis.
Our Client attended A&E with severe pain in the abdomen and episodes of diarrhoea. They were sent home following administration of IV fluids, despite being in extreme pain. During the time in A&E no abdominal examination was performed.
Over the course of the next week, they became increasingly unwell and sought the advice of a GP who took blood tests and advised that these indicated infection and that they needed antibiotics.
They returned to hospital almost two weeks after they initially presented with symptoms of appendicitis. A CT scan reported severe infection, and they were taken to theatre. The appendix had burst and had damaged surrounding organs.
Our Client’s management was below that expected of any reasonable standard of an emergency department; the failure to recognise that they had an intra-abdominal problem and arrange a CT scan was a breach of duty of care. A delay in diagnosis and treatment caused prolonged suffering, disease progression requiring extensive surgery and complications.
