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Eye Surgery Mistakes Are a Common Cause of Blindness in Virginia

Even in cases involving drastic surgical errors, patients can take some small comfort that the error can be corrected. Victims whose right leg was removed instead of their left certainly have a case for medical malpractice-and while a prosthetic limb will never feel the same as a real foot, technology can still allow them to run, jump, and even swim.

But what about body parts that technology cannot replace?

Unfortunately, this question plagues hundreds of eye surgery mistake victims in Virginia. When a surgeon's negligence has led to the loss of vision, no amount of technology-or apologies-will be able to restore your eyesight.

Here are just a few ways a surgical team's mistakes can lead to blindness in DC patients:

• Performing the intended procedure on the wrong eye
• Performing the wrong procedure
• Failure to check the patient's chart for drug interactions/complications
• Removal of healthy eye tissue
• Using the wrong amount of anesthesia
• Improper use of scalpels, lasers or other cutting tools
• Infections caused by improperly sterilized surgical instruments

Most patients are aware of the risks involved in eye surgery. Despite a doctor's assurances that a procedure is "simple" or "routine," there is always a chance that a simple mistake could occur in the operating room-and when the subject of surgery is your eye, there's very little room for error. A small slip could mean blurred vision, light sensitivity, "halos" or double vision-or even permanent blindness.

Some examples of "harmless" vision procedures:

• LASIK or corrective vision
• Cataracts
• Corneal transplants
• Retinal repairs
• Plastic surgery
• Post-accident reparative surgery

As experienced Fairfax medical malpractice attorneys, we know that the hospital may not be able restore your vision after a surgical error. However, by holding them accountable for their terrible mistake, we may be able to stop the same thing from happening to someone else-and get you the compensation you deserve for your suffering.

If you or someone you love has suffered vision loss as a result of eye surgery in DC, call Shevlin Smith today at (703) 591-0067 for a free consultation.

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