[Claims related to anesthesia at the University Hospitals of Paris]

To evaluate the number and the reason of anaesthesia-related malpractice claims in university hospitals of Paris.

Retrospective study.

From December 1977 to December 1994, 1,185 claims, originating from all departments, dental trauma excluded, were reviewed and classified by one medical expert. They were analyzed with regard to type of activity responsible for the damage.

Out of the 789 claims resulting from surgical activity, 41 were directly anaesthesia-related. The most frequent problems were the neurological complications of spinal or epidural anaesthesia (n = 10), and the consequences of difficult intubation or aspiration of stomach contents (n = 5). A series of 19 damages due to posture was difficult to classify as surgery- or anaesthesia-related. In the 41 anaesthesia-related claims, an indemnification was alloted to seven (5.2%). This rate was similar to that for surgical activity-related claims. However, the amount of the anaesthesia-related malpractice compensations was equivalent to 26% of those alloted to the surgery-related claims and to two-thirds of the indemnifications equal to or above 2,000,000 FF.

There are few anaesthesia-related claims in the Paris university hospitals. Only few claims result in a compensation. By contrast, when a indemnification is alloted, its amount is very high. Locoregional anaesthesia seems to be at a higher risk for malpractice claims.