Waking up during surgery

Millions of patients in the U.S. are given anesthesia every day. The purpose of administering anesthesia to patients is to keep them comfortable and pain-free during surgery and other medical procedures. The job of the anesthesiologist is to properly administer and monitor patients during any and all procedures that involve the use of anesthesia.

Anesthesia is very effective if it is carefully administered and if the patient is adequately monitored by the anesthesiologist while it’s in use. However, according to the Mayo Clinic, approximately 1-2 persons out of every 1,000 end up waking up during surgery due to some type of medical error.

Because they are still technically under sedation, people that experience “anesthesia awareness” are unable to move or speak and are, therefore, unable to let the doctors know that they are “awake” and feeling pain. Patients that have experienced anesthesia awareness have also reported feeling a variety of physical sensations, including stitching, tugging, and choking. 

Being awake during surgery due to a medical error on the part of the anesthesiologist can result in serious, if not catastrophic consequences for a patient, including severe pain, long-term psychological and emotional issues such as PTSD and, in some cases, even death.

Is it medical malpractice?

Some of the most common causes of anesthesia awareness include the inadequate use or administration of anesthesia, inadequate monitoring of the patient, or equipment failure/misuse.  If there is an error at some point in the administration of anesthesia and not enough anesthesia is given to the patient, he or she wakes up, becomes aware of certain events during the surgery or procedure, and may actually recall those events at some later point in time.

If the amount of medication given to the patient is inadequate or fails, the patient may feel extreme pain while awake. In some cases, patients are also given a paralytic agent to prevent movement. If the anesthesia fails, it’s almost impossible for the patient to communicate what he or she is experiencing to the doctors. 

One study that was conducted on patients that have experienced anesthesia awareness found that 51% of those patients experienced serious distress post-surgery while 41% experienced long-term psychological damages.

The use of anesthesia requires a trained and licensed anesthesiologist. If you have suffered from anesthesia awareness, you may have grounds to file a claim for medical malpractice.

This nightmare has become reality for some patients

Waking up during surgery is every patient’s nightmare, but for some, it becomes a reality. Anesthesiologists are responsible for administering anesthesia and supervising anesthesiology nurses. Both professionals have a responsibility to monitor the patient while he or she is under sedation and in their care.

Anesthesia awareness can result in long-term emotional impacts as well as serious psychological distress, such as PTSD, which can persist well after the incident has occurred. If you or a loved one has suffered from anesthetic errors, you need to contact an experienced medical malpractice attorney to review your case and help determine that best course of legal action for you to take.