Denver Chiropractic Malpractice Attorneys
Get Legal Help After Negligent Chiropractic Care Leads to Injury
Chiropractic care offers an alternative to pain medicine and surgery. Although chiropractors are not medical doctors, chiropractic malpractice is essentially a form of medical malpractice—and it can be lethal.
If you or a loved one suffered serious injury due to improper care from a chiropractor, the top medical malpractice attorneys at Leventhal Puga Braley P.C. can review your case. There may be compensation available for you; please contact us at (303) 759-9945 or toll-free at (877) 433-3906 for a free consultation.
What Is Chiropractic Malpractice?
Medical malpractice occurs when a healthcare professional negligently causes injury to a patient. Negligence occurs when a healthcare professional does not use reasonable care. These can include errors in diagnosis, treatment, or aftercare.
Chiropractic malpractice often takes place when a chiropractor fails to diagnose a condition that needs timely medical attention, or when a chiropractor injures the patient rather than healing them during manipulation.
The Risk of Strokes
Chiropractors frequently face malpractice suits due to a form of treatment called cervical manipulation therapy (CMT). CMT is an aggressive technique where the patient’s neck is forcefully rotated while the chiropractor applies rapid thrusting movements. According to the American Heart Association Stroke Council, there is significant medical evidence showing that CMT can lead to a stroke.
Research shows that CMT treatment can tear the wall of an artery. This tearing is called a “dissection.” When there is a dissection, a blood clot can form and break free to block a blood vessel in the brain. This may ultimately result in stroke and sometimes death.
Injuries Caused by Chiropractic Malpractice
Chiropractic treatment is generally designed to relieve pain and increase the patient’s mobility. It’s based on controversial theories about the musculature system. Basically, chiropractors believe that many common ailments such as chronic back pain are caused by “misalignment” of the spine (also known as “subluxations”).
Chiropractors attempt to treat pain, nerve damage, and mobility issues caused by “subluxations” by vigorously manipulating the patient’s body. This process, known as an “adjustment,” is regularly performed by chiropractors in hopes of enhancing the patient’s health. But chiropractors are not doctors, and they lack the necessary education to fully assess many of the factors that contribute to the ailments they treat.
A conscientious chiropractor should be quick to acknowledge the limitations of their training and refer patients to medical doctors when necessary. In many cases, chiropractors attempt to treat symptoms and diseases that fall outside their area of expertise.
Due to their lack of medical knowledge, chiropractors will often fail to diagnose serious medical conditions that require advanced medical care. This may cause patients to suffer trauma, physical injury, loss of mobility, nerve damage, and back and spinal cord injuries.
Chiropractic Malpractice and the Law
All practicing chiropractors in Colorado are required by law to maintain malpractice insurance (unless they work for the United States Government, the U.S. Olympic Training Center, or are not receiving compensation for the service they provide.) A licensed chiropractor should have insurance to cover your damages in case they negligently cause a patient harm.
To win a claim against a chiropractor, your malpractice attorney will conduct a thorough investigation. Your attorney will establish the facts of the case and demonstrate how the chiropractor’s negligence caused your injury. This includes interviewing you about your care and injuries, as well as pulling all medical records pertaining to your chiropractic care and your resulting injury. A good attorney will also hire expert medical witnesses, including another chiropractor, to attest to the malpractice.
Work with an Experienced Denver Chiropractic Attorney
It is always difficult when you ask a jury to consider complicated medical evidence and weigh the claims of a licensed professional against the claims of a patient. But our trial attorneys at Leventhal Puga Braley P.C. come relentlessly prepared, and we are well-versed in the medical research it takes to prove that a chiropractor has acted negligently. We also know how to tell the jury a story they can understand and relate to, which helps our clients win the damages they deserve.
If you have been the victim of negligent chiropractic care, it’s time to focus on healing without worrying about the cost of additional medical bills and lost time at work. Our law firm knows medical malpractice better than most, and we have handled major cases across the United States—let us work with the clinic and insurance companies while you focus on getting better.
There is no charge for an initial consultation with Leventhal Puga Braley P.C. To speak with an experienced chiropractic malpractice attorney about your potential case, please call us at (303) 759-9945 or toll-free at (877) 433-3906 today.
Additional Information
- When Can I Sue a Chiropractor for Malpractice in Colorado?
- Chiropractic Adjustment - Mayo Clinic
- Chiropractors & Chiropractic Treatment: Benefits and Risks - WebMD
- Vertebral Artery Dissection After a Chiropractor Neck Manipulation
Great Trial Lawyers Obtaining Unparalleled Results
303-759-9945 
877-433-3906