Effects of being awake during surgery portrayed in new movie
The new movie “Awake”, starring Hayden Christensen, portrays the horrifying and painful effects of anesthesia awareness, which occurs when a patient is awake during surgery, yet unable to tell the doctors or nurses about the pain they are experiencing. Unfortunately, for as many as 30,000 people each year, this traumatic experience is a reality which often could have been avoided.
>>INFORMATION: Anesthesia Awareness Lawsuits
During surgery, patients place their trust in the anesthesiologist to provide the proper amount of medication to avoid pain and keep them unconscious throughout the procedure. Anesthesia awareness is the term used to describe when a patient is not given the proper amount of anesthesia and end up awake during surgery. Paralyzing drugs, which are usually given to avoid movements during the surgery, prevent the patient from expressing their pain and result in long-lasting psychological effects from the trauma.
The movie scene which depicts this occurrence features the character portrayed by Christensen motionless on the operating table while the audience hears his internal screams of agony while he undergoes open heart surgery. The marketing campaign for “Awake” indicates that the movie will “do to surgery what ‘Jaws’ did to swimming in the ocean.”
In reality, the effects of anesthesia awareness can vary from mild feelings of pain and pressure to the excruciating pain with detailed memories of conversations between the doctors and nurses portraye in the film. For those who experience the condition, they often describe it as one of the worst experiences of their lives.
In addition to the pain during the surgery, many victims of this form of medical malpractice are left with permanent emotional and psychological damage. It is common for depression, nightmares, psychological disorders and suicidal thoughts to remain for years. Some experts equate the effects of the trauma to the experiences of combat veterans or rape victims.
A variety of preventable events could allow an individual to wake up during surgery , and the American Society of Anesthesiologists has a task force on the issue to reduce the occurrences. Anesthesia drugs require very precise measurements and human error or mechanical failures could result in miscalculating the drug dosage. In addition, preventable anesthesia problems such as lines getting bent during surgery or machines running out of the drug have also been found to cause anesthesia awareness.
The American Society of Anesthesiologists has a registry which captures stories and key details of individuals who experienced awareness during general anesthesia at www.awaredb.org. The focus of the registry is to work towards stopping anesthesia awareness, with the slogan “one case is one too many.”
ANESTHESIA AWARENESS LAWYERS
The medical malpractice lawyers at Saiontz & Kirk, P.A. investigate potential anesthesia awareness lawsuits on behalf of people who have experienced the trauma of being awake during surgery. If you, a friend or family member have suffered from a preventable anesthesia error, request a free consultation and claim evaluation.
