Collapsed Lung Missed For Four Years
After repeatedly attending hospital, Eddie was eventually diagnosed with a spontaneous pneumothorax. He had suffered four years of severe pain and needed extensive surgery to repair the damage.
Eddie began to suffer excruciating pains in his upper left chest in late 2006. The pain got progressively worse and after four days he was struggling to breathe. Concerned that he was having a heart attack, he attended his local A&E.
In hospital, Eddie underwent a chest x-ray and an ECG. Doctors decided the results were normal and discharged him with a diagnosis of trapped wind.
Eddie continued to live with the discomfort, but three months later suffered another severe attack. The pain was so intense that he could not drive, and his left side became very weak and inactive. He attended the same A&E department, had another x-ray and ECG, but again was diagnosed with trapped wind.
Over the next two years Eddie experienced another three attacks of pain in his chest. Each time he returned to A&E, and each time the same thing happened – he had a chest ray and an ECG, and was diagnosed with trapped wind.
In April 2010, Eddie had another incident of severe pain in his chest. Again, he attended A&E and had another x-ray and an ECG. He had been taking painkillers for a toothache and doctors suggested that this was causing his symptoms.
Eddie stopped taking the painkillers and returned to work. However, he suffered another attack of chest pain one month later and once again he attended A&E. Having gone through the same routine, he was discharged and sent back to work.
Soon after arriving at work, however, he received a telephone call from the hospital. The consultant's secretary said Eddie needed to book an appointment at the hospital as soon as possible. Nothing further was disclosed and Eddie became extremely worried about his health.
At the appointment, the consultant informed Eddie that the x-rays had been checked and he was in fact suffering from a spontaneous pneumothorax, meaning his left lung was deflating on its own. This was causing the intense pain.
After waiting another month to be referred by the hospital, Eddie finally saw a specialist. There he was told that surgery was the only option. Had the problem been diagnosed earlier, less invasive treatments would have been possible. But due to the delay, the lung was badly damaged and an operation was required.
During the operation a third of the left lung was removed and Eddie has since found it difficult to lead a normal life. He finds he becomes short of breath very quickly and cannot walk far. He has no strength in his left arm and his upper body is very weak. Consequently he cannot drive or even get dressed, meaning he must rely on his parents for help.
Because of these injuries, Eddie has been unable to work, causing him financial loss. He is uncertain whether he will ever be able to return to his current work as it is a physical and demanding role, meaning he may need to retrain.
The hospital had a number of opportunities to diagnose Eddie's condition, but it was not until his seventh attendance in four years that the problem was eventually recognised. This unacceptable delay caused Eddie to suffer unnecessary injuries.
We helped him pursue a claim against the hospital and he was awarded £20,000 compensation.
(Details which might identify our client have been changed.)
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