Vocal cord paralysis is an incredibly rare issue that can result from a few different causes. Depending on how you suffered vocal cord paralysis, you might be the victim of medical malpractice.
In some cases, vocal cord paralysis is a natural consequence of certain conditions, diseases, injuries, or neurological disorders. However, even when it is a natural consequence, it might have only developed because your doctor failed to diagnose the underlying issue. If the doctor’s care more directly caused the paralysis or it was the result of a negligent intervention, then you can also hold them liable for your injury.
For help with a potential medical malpractice claim, call (410) 694-7291 for a free case assessment with Rice, Murtha & Psoras’ Maryland medical malpractice attorneys.
Identifying and Suing for Medical Malpractice in Maryland
If you suffered any negative health outcomes because of a doctor’s mistakes, you could be the victim of medical malpractice. Medical malpractice occurs when a doctor or another medical professional fails to carry out medical care in accordance with the relevant standard of care. This means that in every case, there is a right and wrong way to do things. Doctors can disagree over what constitutes the “right way” to treat a patient is and all be correct, but if our experts agree that your doctor did things the “wrong way,” and you suffered additional injuries because of their mistakes, then you would be considered the victim of medical malpractice.
Medical malpractice can stem from misdiagnosis or failure to diagnose. If a doctor should have been able to identify what was wrong with you, but they failed to do so because of their inexperience, lack of training, failure to issue tests, inability to ask for help, or other mistakes, then they could be liable for any and all negative outcomes that stem from their improper diagnosis.
In cases where doctors make mistakes during a procedure or fail to administer the proper medications or treatments for the condition you have, they could also be committing malpractice that our Severna Park medical malpractice lawyers can help you seek compensation for.
Potential Malpractice Involved in Vocal Cord Paralysis in Maryland
The symptoms of vocal cord paralysis involve the inability of your vocal cords to vibrate, making you unable to speak or make other sounds at full capacity. In some cases, this can make you unable to talk or even swallow, but it can also cause choking, make you out of breath, and cause other issues.
Although there are many causes of vocal cord paralysis, there are only a few ways it can be linked back to a doctor’s malpractice. Although this list is not exhaustive, it covers many of the common ways that a doctor could be responsible for your vocal cord paralysis:
Failure to Diagnose a Condition
If your doctor misdiagnoses you or fails to diagnose a medical condition and begin treatment, your condition could get worse. This could be from various causes, such as a virus like COVID-19 or herpes, an injury to the chest/neck, injuries to the vocal cords themselves, or even a tumor. Neurological conditions and strokes can also cause vocal cord paralysis.
It is possible to misdiagnose or fail to diagnose a virus or other infection, and it is possible to overlook injuries, any of which could get worse if left untreated. This could mean that the effects are left to spread, leading to paralyzed vocal cords. An undetected tumor or untreated pre-stroke symptoms could leave you with many potentially serious or even deadly medical conditions, and vocal cord paralysis might be just one of the consequences of a doctor’s malpractice. Similarly, neurological disorders affecting many parts of the body could start with vocal cord paralysis and lead to more severe symptoms like difficulty breathing, potentially becoming even more serious as the condition is left untreated.
Surgical Mistakes
During a surgical procedure, doctors must be careful not to further injure the patient and create new conditions they need to deal with. The vocal cords can be injured in a few different ways, all of which would be considered medical mistakes in many instances.
If the doctor damaged your vagus nerve, that could result in vocal cord paralysis. Similarly, surgery on the chest, neck, or throat could also lead to vocal cord paralysis if the doctor was not careful enough and did additional damage to the area beyond what was necessary to affect the procedure.
Failing to remove an entire tumor or lump during a procedure could also cause it to continue growing, eventually putting undue pressure on the vocal cords and leading to injury or paralysis.
Anesthesia Errors
During a medical procedure, the patient is often intubated, meaning that they have a breathing tube put down their throat. If the anesthesiologist or nurse anesthetist is particularly careless, they could cause injury to the throat and vocal cords, resulting in vocal cord paralysis.
Proving Malpractice in a Vocal Cord Paralysis Case in Maryland
To prove that the doctor’s care fell below the standard of care and caused your vocal cord paralysis, you will often need to produce medical experts. These will be other doctors in the same field and with similar training and experience to your doctor. They will be able to testify as to what the doctor should have done differently to avoid your injury and that this should be expected as part of the standard of care in your case.
Damages for Malpractice Cases Involving Paralyzed Vocal Cords in Maryland
Although vocal cord paralysis is often temporary, it can be a difficult symptom to manage. You could be left with additional medical bills if the condition required additional treatment. Also, if it affected your work – especially if you use your voice for your job – then you could be entitled to additional damages. Permanent effects could be especially devastating for singers, teachers, professors, broadcasters, presenters, lawyers, and others who rely on speaking or singing for their jobs.
Contact Our Maryland Malpractice Lawyers Today
For help, contact our Baltimore medical malpractice attorneys at Rice, Murtha & Psoras at (410) 694-7291 today.