Responsabilité médicale et angioplastie coronaire : à propos de deux affaires judiciaires

Abstract

Coronary angioplasty is a constantly evolving discipline whose high technical standards suggest that it is at high risk of accidents and legal claims. In this work, we discussed two judicial cases in which the responsibility of the interventional cardiologist was involved. Coronary angioplasty was the discussed therapeutic act in both cases, resulting in the death of the patients due to inter-procedural complications. Through our analysis, we have observed that in matters of medical liability, court experts will first verify that the doctor has fulfilled his means of obligation. When an interventional cardiology procedure is prescribed, they will rule on the validity of the indication, the conditions under which it was performed, and finally the management of the complication. The majority of coronary angioplasty accidents are therefore considered by the experts as medical hazards. On the other hand, the management of complications is much more often the subject of criticism.