# Medical and Legal Risks in Tibial Plateau Fractures

## TL;DR

This paper discusses the challenges of diagnosing tibial plateau fractures and the resulting medical and legal risks for emergency physicians.

## Contribution

The paper presents three malpractice cases to highlight risks and emphasize the importance of vigilance and documentation in diagnosing tibial plateau fractures.

## Key findings

- Missed or delayed diagnosis of tibial plateau fractures can lead to poor patient outcomes and legal risks.
- Inadequate discharge instructions and poor documentation are key issues in malpractice cases.
- Emergency physicians must be vigilant in assessing and documenting risks for tibial plateau fractures.

## Abstract

Tibial plateau fractures, which comprise about 1% of all fractures, can be challenging to diagnose in the emergency department setting. Missed and delayed diagnoses can result in poor outcomes for patients and legal risks for clinicians, necessitating a high level of vigilance.

In this article we review three malpractice cases related to tibial plateau fractures. Key issues included missed or delayed diagnosis, mismanagement of associated complications, inadequate discharge instructions, and lack of documentation.

Tibial plateau fractures can be challenging to identify, heightening the risk of downstream complications. As a result, emergency physicians must remain vigilant in assessing patients who are at increased risk for these injuries and document their efforts to both evaluate for and communicate these risks to patients.