Failure To Investigate Cause Of Internal Bleeding

$325,000 RECOVERY

Medical Malpractice – Failure to investigate the cause of internal bleeding following panniculectomy performed to remove excess skin after gastric bypass surgery – Wound opens approximately one week after discharge and contents spill onto the floor – Need for subsequent surgery – Severe pain and suffering for six weeks – Extensive permanent scarring – Loss of naval. Kings County, NY

The plaintiff, who underwent a panniculectomy to remove excess skin following gastric bypass surgery, contended that the defendant vascular surgeon negligently failed to achieve hemostasis in the surgery and that signs, including severely diminished hemoglobin and hematocrit counts, dictated that the defendant vascular surgeon perform additional surgery to ascertain the cause before discharging her. The plaintiff maintained that the defendant failed to do so and that approximately one week later, the wound opened and the contents, including a significant number of blood clots, fell onto the bathroom floor. The plaintiff, who immediately was returned to the hospital, contended that a decision was made that she required a transfusion. The evidence disclosed that although the defendant was on vacation, the hospital was able to reach him, but that he refused to authorize a transfusion. The hospital repeated the request twice, and upon the continued refusal, went up the chain of command in the hospital and obtained authorization for the transfusion. There was no claim that the refusal to authorize the transfusion caused a delay that heightened the extent of permanent injury. The plaintiff contended that she underwent successful surgery and that after six to eight weeks of severe pain and suffering, she essentially recovered from a functional point of view. The plaintiff contended, however, that she has been left with extensive scarring and that the naval actually sloughed off. The case settled prior to trial for $325,000.

REFERENCE Attorney for plaintiff : Victoria Wickman of Law Office of Victoria Wickman in New York, NY.