Laser Spine Malpractice Attorneys

When you are in a considerable amount of pain, you will usually do anything to feel relief— including electing to undergo what is advertised as “innovative” and “revolutionary” treatments.

Laser Spine surgeries have been preying upon these emotions over the last nine years; and while creating an extremely lucrative business model, those who perform these procedures have exhibited little concern for the plight of the patients who have undergone them.

Many of the victims are not only left worse off physically than they were prior to the spine surgery, but the exorbitant cost of the surgical procedures have left them in financial ruin as they attempt to cope with their serious injury and make ends meet at the same time.

A Business Model Geared for Profit First

Laser spinal surgeries are advertised as minimally invasive procedures that allow patients to leave the office immediately following their surgeries feeling pain-free. Laser Spine Institute— which performs these procedures— charges roughly $30,000 per procedure and this fee is over twice what insurance companies would normally provide for traditional procedures that do not implement the use of a laser.

Laser Spine Institute’s margin of profit has been reported at over 34% and to put this in perspective, Google has a profit margin of only 24%. The company has grown from an upstart in 2006 to one that is now valued at roughly $428 million.

Patients Suffer While Surgeons Profit

The issue is that while Laser Spine has recorded massive profits, its patients are suffering. Some patients have reported that the procedures failed to reduce their pain or increased it while others have suffered from internal bleeding and spinal fluid leaks that have threatened further injury.

After electing to undergo one of the expensive procedures offered by Laser Spine, many patients have needed to have revisionary surgeries elsewhere performed by traditional surgeons in order to correct the damage caused by the laser surgery and then to address the original concern.

A Flurry of Medical Malpractice Lawsuits

In response to the reckless and greedy behaviors exhibited by Laser Spine, patients have begun to fight back. The company is the defendant of numerous medical malpractice lawsuits being brought against it on grounds that the claims made to patients were false, the risks were not communicated, and that Laser Spine did not ensure the wellbeing of its patients following the procedures. Insurance providers are refusing to cover the procedure citing a lack of evidence and research supporting the efficacy of the procedures as well as their safety.

Fifteen lawsuits have been filed against Laser Spine Institute since 2009, and the number of lawsuits filed per procedure is markedly higher than what is considered normal.

Outpatient surgeons are normally subject to one claim out of every 3,333 surgeries but Laser Spine Institute is now facing lawsuits from 15 plaintiffs after performing 7,500 procedures between 2006 and 2009.

This is a claim rate of one in every 500 procedures, which is six times the national average and as more plaintiffs come forward the ratio may change. In fact, the family of one patient was recently awarded a $10 million verdict in a wrongful death case against Laser Spine Institute. This multi-million dollar verdict came after the surgeon discharged the patient with significant amounts of an anesthetic still in her system

Laser Spine Surgery Often Sells False Promises

Laser Spine has preyed on the weak, often encouraging those in extreme pain to go deep into debt in order to pay for their laser spine surgery on the promise of pain relief. Instead, these patients needed to incur even more debt to pay for additional surgeries and medical care in order to recover from the injuries they’ve sustained at the hands of a business model that only has profit in mind.

The Dangers of Laser Spine Surgery

Laser spine surgery often leaves patients with a serious injury. The heat from the laser can damage your nerves. It is typically less effective than typical spinal surgeries that use methods of invasive surgery. Further, it involves doctors who use questionable surgical techniques.

Many times, the doctor performing the surgery does not even specialize in spinal surgery. This is a very delicate type of procedure to leave to someone without specialized expertise. Independent research has shown that this surgery does not have a high rate of being effective. In many cases, it is simply too risky to trust your spine to an "institute" with questionable qualifications.

If you underwent laser spine surgery and continue to feel pain or suffered additional injuries as a result of the procedure, contact the Rosenfeld Injury Lawyers LLC today to speak with an attorney about your rights as a patient and consumer. Medical professionals must uphold a certain standard of care, and they can be held accountable for a breach of duty in a personal injury lawsuit. You may have a medical malpractice claim if you have been hurt.

Chicago Laser Spine Surgeon Medical Malpractice Attorneys

During a free consultation with an attorney, we will collect all of the information you have available about your case, review the details with you and begin our own investigation into your possible medical malpractice claim. We will speak with medical experts and learn the facts of your case to see if the surgeon breached the standard of care. Then, we can give you legal advice about your possible lawsuit.