Even though gallbladder surgery is one of the most commonly performed medical operations, any surgery is invasive, and patients could suffer severe harm if the procedure is not done correctly.

At Olson Personal Injury Lawyers, our Colorado medical malpractice attorneys have experience successfully litigating gallbladder surgery malpractice claims. We are ready to handle all the complex technical and legal aspects of your claim and provide counsel and support through every step of your malpractice case. We prepare every case as if it were going to trial as we fight for our clients’ rights and interests.

If you have been the victim of gallbladder surgery malpractice in Colorado, you will have an ally with the compassionate Colorado medical malpractice lawyers at Olson Personal Injury Lawyers. Our team will deliver unparalleled customer experience as we advocate for the best possible outcome for your case.

To schedule a free and confidential consultation, call us or contact us online today.

Gallbladder Surgery Complications in Colorado

Gallbladder surgeries are typically performed using laparoscopic techniques. When you have your gallbladder removed through laparoscopic surgery, the surgeon makes several small incisions in your abdomen and inserts a small camera and tools. The smaller incisions minimize scars and usually lead to a quicker recovery. The camera allows the surgeon to view your internal organs during the operation.

Unfortunately, laparoscopic surgery sometimes results in complications. A common mistake that surgeons make in these procedures is accidentally cutting the common bile duct. A cut will empty bile, a fluid that aids digestion, from the liver into the abdominal cavity and prevent the bile from reaching the small intestine. When bile spills into the abdomen, serious complications can occur, and the patient will need additional surgery to repair the bile duct and drain the bile from the abdomen.

Complications and injuries that can occur during gallbladder surgery include:

  • Tears caused by the insertion of instruments
  • Clipping or cutting the hepatic ducts or the common bile duct
  • Inflammation of the bile ducts
  • Lacerating the bowel or intestine, leading to bile leaks, infections or abscesses
  • Gallstones remaining in the abdominal cavity
  • Gallstones pushed into the common bile duct
  • Improper identification of arteries, ducts, and organs
  • Injury to the abdominal blood vessels
  • Bile leaking into the abdominal cavity
  • Cutting the liver
  • Cutting the hepatic artery

These complications can be serious and even fatal in some cases. One out of every 1,000 patients will die during gallbladder removal, according to the American College of Surgeons.

If your surgery was performed using the laparoscopic method, your recovery period should be only a couple of days. If open cholecystectomy, the traditional method was used, it could take up to six weeks to recover.

In the days after your surgery, you may experience symptoms that could indicate a complication.

Call the doctor if you experienced any of the following symptoms: 

  • Fever
  • Chills
  • Bleeding, swelling, or redness from the incision site
  • Pain around the incision site

  • Yellowing of the skin
  • Abdominal pain or cramping
  • Chest pain
  • No bowel movement for three days

These symptoms could mean that there was an issue during your gallbladder surgery and may be a result of the surgeon’s negligence or malpractice.

How to Prove Malpractice in Gallbladder Surgery Cases in Colorado

In any medical malpractice claim, the plaintiff must prove that they were injured due to the actions or inaction of a medical professional. That burden requires you to demonstrate that the surgeon or another healthcare professional failed to meet the proper standard of care when performing your gallbladder surgery or caring for you afterward.

To prove medical malpractice in gallbladder surgery case, you need to make a case that the treatment you received did not meet an acceptable standard of care. To prove this, medical experts need to be able to scrutinize the defendant’s actions and confirm that they were not what another professional in the same situation would have done.

You must prove that the defendant’s mistake or negligence directly caused your injuries. In the case of a wrongful death claim arising from medical malpractice, surviving family members must prove that the gallbladder surgery malpractice was the cause of the death.

If you were injured due to a surgical error or your loved one died as a result of medical negligence in Colorado, be sure to seek honest counsel from an experienced Wyoming medical malpractice lawyer.

Common reasons for surgical malpractice include:

  • Insufficient planning. A surgeon must always be well-prepared for the procedure. Preoperative planning should consist of preparing for any complications that may occur. It can also include preparation by surgical assistants to make sure all the necessary tools are ready and available when needed.
  • Failure to notice an error. Many surgical errors can be successfully repaired. Failure to correct a mistake could lead to serious complications and force doctors to order emergency surgery to repair the damage.
  • Failure to communicate. This includes communication among medical staff as well as with patients. Whenever a patient is undergoing surgery, a team of healthcare professionals is involved, often including the surgeon’s staff, the primary care doctor, nurses, anesthesiologists and any other specialists helping with the operation. Errors are often the result of a failure to communicate effectively.
  • Failure to follow-up. The period of time immediately after surgery is critical to the recovery process for the patient. However, further follow-ups need to occur after the patient has left postoperative or post-op. This follow-up is key to determining whether the patient is experiencing any complications.
  • Fatigue. Tired surgeons and other medical staffers are much more likely to make mistakes than those who are well-rested.

Because proving gallbladder surgery malpractice is complicated from both a legal and medical standpoint, you should discuss the specifics of your case with a skilled medical malpractice lawyer at Olson Personal Injury Lawyers.

Gallbladder Malpractice Settlements in Colorado

When you file a gallbladder surgery malpractice case in Colorado, you are asking the courts or the insurance company to provide you with damages that will compensate you for your losses.

In Wyoming, there are two primary types of compensatory damages: economic damages and non-economic damages.

Economic damages are those that have a dollar value and are easily quantifiable.

Economic damages include: 

  • Medical expenses
  • Future medical care needs
  • Medication costs
  • Rehabilitation costs
  • Lost wages
  • Loss of earning capacity

Non-economic damages are not as easily quantifiable.

These types of damages include:

  • Emotional distress
  • Pain and suffering
  • Disfigurement
  • Loss of enjoyment of life
  • Loss of consortium

Our knowledgeable Colorado medical malpractice attorneys can help calculate the full value of the damages you have suffered. We are ready to fight for the full and fair compensation that you deserve for your gallbladder surgery injuries.

Contact a Gallbladder Malpractice Lawyer in Colorado Today

If you have been a victim of a negligent gallbladder surgery error and need the help of a medical malpractice lawyer in Colorado, contact Olson Personal Injury Lawyers as soon as possible. We are ready to stand up for patients who’ve been the victims of medical negligence.

Call or contact us today for a free and confidential consultation.