Evidence map›Paper›PMID 32908844›Full record

ArticleAnnals of surgical treatment and research2020

Medicolegal implications from litigations involving necrotizing fasciitis.

Min Ji Kim, Su Hwan Shin, Ji Yong Park

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Annals of surgical treatment and research, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

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0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

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3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

Min Ji KimDepartment of Medical Law and Ethics, Graduate School, Yonsei University, Seoul, Korea.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8444-4025
Su Hwan ShinDepartment of Medical Law and Ethics, Graduate School, Yonsei University, Seoul, Korea.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2812-1985
Ji Yong ParkYonsei University Law School, Seoul, Korea.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9229-6958

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeNecrotizing fasciitis (NF) is one of the most severe healthcare-associated infections. Early diagnosis of NF is difficult because of nonspecific signs and symptoms in the early stage. NF often presents with risks of medicolegal disputes. This study aimed to provide baseline data on the general characteristics of medical accidents involving NF, features of NF, and typical court opinions regarding medical malpractice in Korea.

methodsIn this study, 25 cases of medical malpractice litigation involving NF sentenced between 1998 and 2018 were analyzed with respect to 3 variables: medical accident, NF, and breach of duty.

resultsThe department of colorectal surgery was most frequently involved in litigation cases (40.0%), and colorectal surgery was the most frequent procedure before the diagnosis of NF (40.0%). The most common sites were the upper and lower extremities. The courts agreed that there was typically improper monitoring after treatment, frequently related to NF.

conclusionThese litigation cases imply that physicians cannot be blamed for the failure to prevent NF. The timely recognition and management of NF might be considered as one of the main factors for deciding malpractice in court. Therefore, surgeons, especially in the department of colorectal surgery, should pay attention to changes in the patient's status after surgery. Surgeons need to learn from medical accidents, as it is important for risk management, preventing the occurrence of similar cases, and improving the quality of healthcare services. We report the medicolegal implications from medical lawsuits involving NF.

Indexed as

InfectionsLegal liabilityLitigationMalpracticeNecrotizing fasciitis

Identifiers

PMID32908844
PMCPMC7463042

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.