complication
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complication
An unexpected difficulty or additional problem that occurs during the course of an illness or medical treatment.
Bei der Operation gab es leider Komplikationen, weshalb er länger im Krankenhaus bleiben muss.
Unfortunately, there were complications during the operation, which is why he has to stay in the hospital longer.
complication
A circumstance that makes a situation more difficult or more complex than expected.
Die verspätete Lieferung führte zu erheblichen Komplikationen im Projekt.
The delayed delivery led to significant complications in the project.
The word 'Komplikation' (complication) belongs to the word family of 'kompliziert' (complicated). Both come from the idea that something is 'folded together' and therefore becomes confusing or difficult.
Die Planung wurde durch unvorhergesehene Komplikationen sehr kompliziert.
The planning became very complicated because of unforeseen complications.
'Komplikation' (complication) is very often used with the verbs 'auftreten' (to occur) or 'führen zu' (to lead to). You say 'es treten Komplikationen auf' (complications occur) or 'etwas führt zu Komplikationen' (something leads to complications).
Während des Projekts traten unerwartete Komplikationen auf.
Unexpected complications occurred during the project.
You can recognize the medical meaning from the context. Words like 'Operation' (operation), 'Krankheit' (illness), 'Patient' (patient), or 'Behandlung' (treatment) make it clear that it is about health problems.
Nach der Herzoperation gab es zum Glück keine Komplikationen.
Fortunately, there were no complications after the heart operation.
In the general sense, 'Komplikation' (complication) is often combined with adjectives such as 'erheblich' (significant), 'technisch' (technical), or 'rechtlich' (legal) to describe the type of difficulty.
Ein Softwarefehler verursachte technische Komplikationen im System.
A software error caused technical complications in the system.
circumstance
Umstände and Komplikation can both refer to an additional difficulty in a process. Komplikation usually refers to a specific obstacle, while Umstände refers to the overall effort and trouble involved. Use Komplikation for the individual problem and Umstände for the bothersome situation as a whole.
Eine fehlende Unterschrift war eine Komplikation bei der Anmeldung.
A missing signature was a complication during registration.
Die Anmeldung war trotz der zusätzlichen Unterlagen ohne große Umstände möglich.
Despite the additional documents, registering was possible without much trouble.
