[Errors in treatment of soft tissue phlegmon : expert assessment and forensic evaluation]

In ten cases of soft part phlegmons resulting in death (8) and amputation (2) respectively, various types of medical malpractice were evident. The diagnosis was missed, or the disease was correctly diagnosed but underestimated. Typical therapeutic mistakes were the omission of bacteriological investigations and of the proper antibiotical therapy, a delayed hospital admission, or a delayed or insufficient surgical intervention. These errors however could never be proved to have caused the unfavorable outcome in view of the doubtful prognosis of soft part phlegmons even under proper treatment. Thus, evident malpractice never resulted in a condemnation for bodily injury or involuntary manslaughter.