Kidney Disease Malpractice Attorneys Fighting For Clients Nationwide

Most cases of advanced kidney failure are preventable or delayable if properly diagnosed and treated. Failing to diagnose or treat kidney disease can lead to complete kidney failure and the need for a lifetime of prescription drugs, time-consuming kidney dialysis and one or more kidney transplant operations. It usually results in the premature death of the patient.

While medical negligence typically does not cause kidney disease, kidney failure can result from a failure to diagnose kidney disease in its earliest stages or a failure to treat kidney disease properly. In some cases, medical negligence involving a prescription drug error could cause acute renal failure. These are all forms of medical malpractice known as kidney disease malpractice.

What Is Medical Malpractice?

Every medical professional has a duty to provide a reasonable standard of care to the patients they treat. This does not mean they must order every possible test and use every available technology on a fishing expedition. They must provide the level of competent medical care that other doctors would provide in similar circumstances.

• They should order tests that are “reasonable” and standard under the circumstances.
• They should review lab results in a timely manner.
• They should consult a specialist on difficult cases.
• If a specific illness is suspected, a general practitioner should refer the patient to a specialist who will be up to date on the latest medical knowledge in his or her field of specialization.

When medical professionals such as Miami kidney doctors fail to provide a reasonable standard of care, they have been negligent. If that negligence results in harm to a patient, the patient can be compensated financially.

Winning Multi-Million Dollar Settlements For Victims Of Kidney Disease Malpractice

When it comes to helping our clients hold negligent doctors accountable and recover compensation, our commitment knows no bounds. Our attorneys have dedicated their careers to the practice of medical malpractice law. They have seen firsthand how devastating another person or facility’s carelessness can be for victims and their families. This compassion, combined with their skill, is why they have handled thousands of claims and recovered millions of dollars for clients. They have gone to the state Supreme Court to win precedent-setting kidney disease cases. When you are at a difficult period in your life due to kidney disease malpractice, you can place your trust in them.

Proving That Medical Negligence Caused Harm

People who have been harmed by medical negligence — including patients experiencing kidney failure or with advanced kidney disease — can bring a medical malpractice lawsuit. They can seek compensation for lost wages and lost earning potential, medical costs, dialysis, medications, pain and suffering and other expenses.

If you suspect medical negligence made your condition worse, talk to a medical malpractice lawyer about your suspicions. An experienced medical malpractice lawyer can review your medical records with the assistance of a doctor to see if medical malpractice may have played a role.

The Progression Of Kidney Disease

Millions suffer from the symptoms of kidney disease in the United States. Kidney disease can be caused by high blood pressure, a variety of illnesses, infections, toxic levels of drugs and physical trauma resulting in kidney injuries. For some patients, the cause of kidney disease is never precisely determined and many live with kidney disease for many years without realizing it due to the subtle nature of many symptoms.

There are several types of kidney disease, at least two of which can be diagnosed and treated before they become life-threatening: glomerulonephritis and light chain deposition disease.

Sadly, many who suffer the ill effects of kidney disease would be much healthier if their doctors had tested and referred these patients to specialists as early as possible. In the early stages, urine tests and possibly a biopsy can lead to an accurate diagnosis and proper treatment.

Kidney Disease Symptoms

Those with kidney disease may have dangerously high blood pressure. They may see some or all of the following symptoms:

• Discolored urine
• Blood in urine
• Swelling of the hands and ankles
• Dangerously high blood pressure
• Foamy urine

Doctors have several tests available to screen for kidney disease, beginning with urine tests for the presence of blood (hematuria) and protein (proteinuria), and blood tests looking for decreased protein, increased creatinine and abnormal BUN (blood urea nitrogen). (One form of kidney disease, light chain deposition disease — LCDD — is a blood-type cancer that causes kidney disease.) Other tests include blood pressure measurements, glomerular filtration rate tests, MRI, CT scans, 24-hour urine collection and kidney biopsies.

Chronic Kidney Disease • Advanced Kidney Disease • End-Stage Renal Disease/Kidney Failure

Kidney failure and trauma may diminish kidney function incrementally over time (chronic kidney disease) or lead to abrupt and massive kidney failure (acute renal failure).

• Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a gradual but continual loss of kidney function over time, often many years. A proper diagnosis during the chronic phase of kidney disease can allow for treatment that could minimize or possibly even reverse the course of the disease. According to the National Kidney Foundation, one in nine Americans suffers from CKD. People with chronic kidney disease are at high risk for heart attack and high blood pressure, and they may develop end-stage renal failure.
• End-stage renal failure (ESRD) is the total or almost total loss of kidney function. It is a permanent condition. People suffering from ESRD must receive kidney dialysis treatments or receive a kidney transplant to avoid death.
• Acute renal failure (ARF) refers to the sudden loss of healthy kidney function. ARF can be caused by severe force trauma or blood loss from an accident. It can also be caused by a drug overdose (from a prescription error or ingestion of other substances) in certain disease processes.

With the proper medical approach, kidney failure can usually be halted at the chronic stage and sometimes reversed. Negligent treatment — medical malpractice — that involves kidney disease puts lives at risk. At Kurzban Kurzban Tetzeli and Pratt P.A., our experienced lawyers are here to provide you with the legal help you need to get the compensation you deserve for the damage to your health.

Was Your Kidney Disease Diagnosis Delayed By Lack Of Testing Or Referral?

The kidneys are essential to good health. When your kidneys are not functioning properly, you are at risk for additional health problems such as nerve damage, heart failure, bone disease and infertility. Accurate and early diagnosis can often reduce and sometimes even reverse the consequences of kidney failure. In other cases, early diagnosis, the right medication and proper treatment can keep the disease in a chronic, but manageable phase, so it does not progress to end-stage kidney failure. For every kidney failure patient, an early and accurate diagnosis is essential.

Cases involving a failure to diagnose or medical mistakes and errors that lead to renal failure are unique. Therefore, it’s important that you trust your case to a team of attorneys who have the experience to determine liability, file a lawsuit and oversee litigation to obtain needed compensation.

Glomerular Diseases: What They Are And What Can You Do

Glomerular diseases include several distinct and potentially serious kidney diseases. As blood enters the kidney to begin the filtering process, it passes through a cluster of cells called a glomerulus. In each kidney, about a million glomeruli — at the tips of about 1 million nephrons — initiate the filtering of toxins and waste from the blood. Damage to the glomeruli often severely impacts healthy kidney functioning and, in turn, an individual’s overall health. Glomerular diseases may be caused by drugs, diseases, infections or traumatic accidents.

Different types of glomerular disease include:

• IgA disease (Berger’s nephropathy)
• Minimal change GN
• Focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS)
• Membranous glomerulonephritis
• Post-infectious GN
• Rapidly progressive glomerulonephritis

There is also glomerulonephritis, sometimes known as glomerular nephritis (GN), which causes inflammation of the glomeruli and may lead to complete kidney failure.

Causal Factors For Glomerular Disease

There are several types of glomerular diseases and several causal factors for each type. Causes of glomerular disease include infections, disease, drugs, and accidents causing severe blood loss or physical trauma.

We Want To Help; Call Now

At Kurzban Kurzban Tetzeli & Pratt, P.A., we help people who have suffered the effects of kidney disease because of the negligence of a doctor, clinic or any other medical professional. To speak with a medical malpractice attorney at our firm, call our Coral Gables law office at 305-744-5888 or contact us by email.