Orthopaedics refers to a branch of medicine involved in the preservation and restoration of the musculoskeletal system. The medical professionals involved in this section of medicine specialise in treating bone, joints and muscles and they successfully treat thousands of people each year without any complications.
The type of work that is usually undertaken by the medical professionals involved in the orthopaedic sector of the medical profession includes aspects such as the following:
- Dealing with broken bones and fractures
- Surgery on joints (shoulder, elbow and hand)
- Joint reconstruction
- Hip replacements
- Foot and ankle surgery
- Spine surgery
Broken/fractured bones are examples of the most common orthopaedic injuries. There are many ways in which orthopaedic injuries can occur such as through trauma, i.e. a road traffic accident. There are however cases where orthopaedic injuries are made worse or caused by medical negligence. Some examples of this include:
- Poor treatment of fractures
- Damage to nerves during medical procedures or surgery
- Damage to circulation during medical procedures or surgery
- Misinterpretation of x-rays and other test results
- Infection arising from inadequate cleansing of wounds or surgery
If you are unfortunate enough to be suffering due to the actions or inactions that were taken by a medical team then you could be entitled to make a claim for compensation. Even though medical negligence claims are known to be increasingly hard to win, if you bring a claim forwards it will be evaluated by a professional legal firm who will advise you on whether your case has a chance of being successful. If your claim is a success the amount of compensation that you will be awarded will depend on a number of factors such as the nature of your injury or illness and whether you will recover fully from your injury/illness and if it has a long term effect on your health and wellbeing as well as the amount of losses you will encounter as a result of your injury.
Some examples of orthopaedic injuries include multiple fractures, which may affect your skull, leg or pelvis to name just a few. Any orthopaedic injury that you sustain can cause significant pain as well as restricting your movement and your ability to work.
Sprains and strains are among the most common orthopaedic injuries. Sprains describe an injury to a ligament and strains describe an injury to muscle. Whatever orthopaedic injury you are suffering isn't the most important aspect right now, what is most important is how you sustained your orthopaedic injury. If your injury was sustained through negligence on behalf of a medical professional then find out where you stand legally with putting in a claim for compensation.
