Settlement obtained for woman following delayed appendicitis diagnosis

Amanda Cavanagh, a medical negligence specialist at Ashtons Legal, has obtained a settlement for Ms R, a woman whose appendix ruptured after a Cambridgeshire hospital failed to diagnose and treat her appendicitis in a timely manner.

Ms R attended Hinchingbrooke Hospital as she was experiencing severe abdominal pain. A telephone call was made to the surgical registrar who planned to await the results of her blood tests and reassess her condition overnight.

Despite the results of Ms R’s blood tests showing some abnormalities together with her worsening clinical condition, the surgical registrar did not attend.

The following day Ms R was examined by a consultant surgeon who diagnosed appendicitis. During emergency surgery the appendix was found to be ruptured and gangrenous which then led to the development of sepsis.

Had the surgical registrar attended Ms R having reviewed the blood test results and having been notified about her worsening condition, then it is likely that she would have undergone appendicectomy up to 12 hours earlier and on the balance of probabilities prior to her appendix rupturing.

Amanda comments: “My client was not only suffering from an undiagnosed and untreated appendicitis, she was also pregnant at the time which caused her serious concerns about the welfare of her unborn child. Had the registrar attended when called, she would not only have avoided the physical pain and suffering, she would have avoided the sepsis and the mental anguish surrounding the welfare of her unborn child.”