Yes, you can sue the surgeon if s/he made an unreasonable Lasik eye surgery mistake and you have suffered damages. Not all mistakes indicate negligence, though. There are several elements that must exist to have a viable case, a few of which we’ll briefly review below.
Lasik Surgery Gone Wrong
Lasik surgery is a procedure in which an ophthalmologist uses a laser to cut into and reshape the cornea to improve vision. It’s used to treat vision issues such as myopia, astigmatism, and hyperopia. Most patients have excellent results with this corrective procedure.
However, not all patients are good candidates for Lasik surgery. If the screening process isn’t handled correctly, or if the surgeon made a mistake with preparation or during the procedure, there can be severe detrimental outcomes. Some of the risk patients face with botched Lasik surgery include the following.
- Losing partial vision
- Being over- or under-treated and still requiring corrective lenses
- Developing debilitating symptoms, such as halos, double vision, and glare
- Developing severe dry eye syndrome which can cause discomfort and reduce clarity of vision
- Developing night blindness
Suing the Eye Surgeon after Lasik Surgery
To have a viable lawsuit against the ophthalmologist, you’ll need to be able to prove several elements. First, you’ll need to establish what the reasonable standard of care is for this particular treatment, and then show that the surgeon somehow deviated from that standard. This is accomplished using testimonies from medical experts. If the doctor made a mistake that other physicians would not have made in the same situation, then you can likely pursue a malpractice claim against him/her. Below are a few common reasons eye surgeons are sued after Lasik surgery.
- Inadequate screening (Patients will be large pupils, dry eyes, and thin corneas are not suitable candidates.)
- Wrong surgery techniques
- Defective equipment
- Improper attention to post-surgery issues, such as inflammation and infection
After proving that the surgeon breached the standard of care, you’ll have to be able to show that you sustained actual harm because of the doctor’s mistakes. This can be substantiated using medical records, testimonies, and other documentation.
Free Consult with a Lasik Lawyer in Georgia
If you sustained complications because of your eye doctor’s mistakes with your Lasik procedure, we invite you to call a medical malpractice attorney at The Law Office of Jason R. Schultz in Georgia. You will get a medical malpractice lawyer who fights for full and fair recovery for your damages. Call today at 404-474-0804 for a free consultation.
