February 2024

Stomach cancer is referred to as gastric cancer. The most common type of gastric cancer is called adenocarcinoma. This starts in the glandular tissue that composes the lining of the stomach and accounts for 90% to 95% of all gastric cancers. Other forms of gastric cancer include lymphomas, which involve the lymphatic system and sarcomas, which involve the connective tissue (such as muscle, fat, or blood vessels).

Generally, the best chance for cure of gastric cancer is when it is…

Continue Reading Stomach Cancer and Medical Malpractice

Hernia is when an organ or tissue protrudes through a weak area in the surrounding muscle or connective tissue. There are different types of hernias that generally vary by location. Congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) is a developmental defect of the diaphragm that permits the abdominal viscera to herniate into the chest. The amount of herniated contents may be small or large and it generally contains parts of the intestine, spleen, or liver. CDH occurs during a critical period of lung…

Continue Reading Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia in Newborns

An infant’s skull is comprised of boney plates separated by sutures.  Cranial sutures are strong, fibrous tissues that hold the bones together and they intersect in large soft spots known as fontanelles. The infant’s skull does not completely fuse until the age of two thereby granting the brain time to grow. Once the bones fuse, the sutures no longer remain flexible.  

Craniosynostosis is due to premature fusion of one or more cranial sutures.  It affects 1 in every…

Continue Reading Craniosynostosis and Medical Malpractice

Hydrocephalus is also known as “water in the brain.”  It is a condition in which there is an abnormal accumulation of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in the ventricles, which are cavities in the brain.  In infants with hydrocephalus, CSF builds up in the central nervous system, causing the soft spot near the front of the scalp, known as the anterior fontanelle, to bulge and the head to be larger than expected. There is also a soft spot near the back of…

Continue Reading Hydrocephalus and Medical Malpractice

The term volvulus is derived from the Latin word volve, which means to twist. A colonic volvulus occurs when a part of the colon twists on its mesentery, resulting in acute, subacute, or chronic colonic obstruction.  Volvulus involving the sigmoid colon is the most common, occuring in 75% of cases.  Sigmoid volvulus occurs when the last part of the large bowel just before the rectum (named for its “S” shape) twists on its self.  It is common in elderly men…

Continue Reading Sigmoid Colon Volvulus and Medical Malpractice