After looking at more than 46,000 patients of non-cardiac surgeries in 28 European countries, researchers in the United Kingdom found that four percent of them died before they every made it out of the hospital. This figure is much higher than previous national estimates for many of the countries in the study.
The study on surgery fatality rates in Europe was published on Thursday in the journal Lancet. The most recent data in the U.S. suggests that 1.14 percent of patients who go in for surgery never leave the hospital; however, medical experts may be wondering whether this figure isn’t higher in light of the new research.
In the UK, the study found that the death rate was 3.6 percent. The previous estimate for the country was one percent.
Unfortunately, medical malpractice is not uncommon and surgical errors are one of the leading causes of medical malpractice lawsuits.
As patients, we expect that we will be kept safe during routine surgery; however, this new study suggests that there might be a higher risk than previously thought when going under the knife.
For more information on the legal rights which may be available to medical malpractice victims and their families, complete the Free Case Review on this page.
