[Medical malpractice in surgery I: Suspected malpractice and patterns of risks].

Medical malpractice is assumed for surgical procedures much more often than for conservative treatment. In a nut shell there can be identified three general problem areas--treatment of patient in inappropriate facilities, inadequate information of patient and lack of documentation. Several examples are given. For the assessment of assumed medical malpractice the expert opinion and consented guidelines are crucial; they both benchmark "good medical practice". Thus these two tools have to be handled and developed carefully.