Last year, first-of-a-kind drug approvals by the FDA reached their highest level in 19 years. The annual total of first-of-a-kind drugs increased to this level because of the drug industry’s focus on drugs designed to treat rare and hard-to-treat diseases. In 2015, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved 45…
The law firm of Williams, Bax & Saltzman, P.C. represented Cole Goesel and his parents in a personal injury lawsuit that settled before trial. Because Cole was a minor, the law firm needed judicial approval to finalize the settlement. The parties’ contingent-fee agreement entitled the law firm to one-third of…
Andrea Larkin, 25, suffered from vertigo. When tested, she was shown to have a large venous varix on the left side of her brain and an aneurysm on the right side. A varix is an enlarged vein, artery or vessel. Larkin received her medical care from Dr. Jehane Johnston. A…
On Sept. 17, 2009 Crystal McFadden was admitted to Northwestern Memorial Hospital in full-term labor. Her care was managed by a team of resident obstetricians under the direction of the defendant, Dr. Jeffrey Dungan, the supervising attending obstetrician. During the course of her labor, the residents and nursing staff documented…
Iala Suarez was 24 weeks pregnant when she went to her obstetrician, Dr. Michael Coffey, for a regularly scheduled appointment. During that visit, testing showed that she had protein in her urine and high blood pressure. The next day, she went to the Peace River Medical Center, where she underwent…
Stacy Maxberry attempted a vaginal birth after a Cesarean section birth. This is often referred to as “V-back.” During the delivery, the fetal monitor showed repetitive decelerations, a dangerous sign for the unborn child. The obstetrician in charge of the birth was Dr. Matthew Whitted, who was contacted about the…
During Tristan Hamilton’s delivery, his mother was given Pitocin to induce labor. The treating obstetrician instructed attending nurses to give no more than 20 milli-units of Pitocin to allow only four contractions every ten minutes. The nurses did not follow those instructions. Because of the excessive amount of Pitocin given…
Alice Sodjago was in labor when she was admitted to a hospital. The nurse who treated her performed a vaginal exam and noted the presence of heavy meconium. The fetal monitor revealed fetal distress. The nurse contacted a midwife who did not call the on-call obstetrician. About 20 minutes later,…
On Sept. 5, 2015, Jaclyn Pena-Prather arrived at Sherman Hospital in Elgin, Ill., for an elective induction of labor. She was more than 41 weeks’ pregnant. She was a patient of Dr. Carol Korzen, who practiced obstetrics and gynecology in Elgin. After admission, an external monitor was applied, and the…
During the delivery of Gwendolyn E., her shoulder became stuck or she encountered shoulder dystocia. Shoulder dystocia is a term used when the baby’s shoulder gets stuck behind the pelvic bone of the mother during delivery. Because of the shoulder dystocia involving Gwendolyn’s delivery, the attending obstetrician, Dr. Miguel Carbonell,…