It has been reported that the medical devices that pose the greatest safety risk to patients, including the metal-on-metal hip implants, are allowed into the marketplace without sufficient evaluation for safety and effectiveness. According to a recent New England Journal of Medicine article, it was found that previously cleared medical…
Chicago Medical Malpractice Attorney Blog
$1.6 Million Jury Verdict for Fatal Brain Trauma in Hospital Room
South Korean immigrant Young Bahng, 60, was admitted to the University of Chicago Hospital on April 18, 2006. He was there to undergo a live-donor liver transplant from his son. Bahng was self-employed in the conveyor system business. He was suffering from end stage liver disease as a result of having hepatitis B…
$38.61 Million Jury Verdict in Misdiagnosis of Stroke
Kody Myrick, 17, suddenly slumped over at his job and had difficulty speaking. He was brought to Bakersfield Memorial Hospital’s emergency department. A nurse there made note of a possible stroke. Then an emergency room physician diagnosed profound neurological deficits and ordered a brain CT scan. The scan results showed…
Cook County Jury Verdict for Hospital in Paraplegic Spinal Surgery Case
A Cook County jury has decided that Northwestern Memorial Hospital was not negligent after a back surgery on 83-year-old JoAnn Smith went wrong. On Aug. 5, 2010, Smith underwent an L4-5 microendoscopic foraminotomy and discectomy at Northwestern Memorial Hospital for management of her back pain. After the surgery, she was diagnosed…
Cook County Jury Verdict for Hospital and Doctor in Failure to Hospitalize Pneumonia Patient Blamed for Death
Danute Paulaviciene, 57, came to the office of the defendant internist, Dr. Edmund Vizinas, on Dec. 27, 2008 complaining of fever, shortness of breath and poor sleep. She had recently visited the caves in Missouri. On examination, she was noted to have a fever of 100.5 degrees, pulse of 110, respirations…
$4.51 Million Jury Verdict for Untimely Diagnosis and Treatment of Cardiac Arrest
Janelle Jones, 57, underwent a cardiac catherization at Medical Center of Southeast Texas. Jones complained of chest pain before she was discharged. She underwent some testing. Jones was told to follow up with her treating physician in one week or go to the hospital if her pain increased. Four days after she…
Medical Malpractice Amputation Case Barred by Timeliness Under the Federal Tort Claims Act
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in Chicago has affirmed a district court’s order dismissing a medical negligence case brought against the Department of Veteran Affairs. Jerome Augutis underwent reconstructive surgery on his right foot at Illinois’ Edward Hines Jr. Veterans Administration Hospital in July 2006. Because of…
Lawsuit About Clearing Patient for Hip Surgery Ends in Defense Verdict
On May 27, 2005, Dennis Swallow came to the office of the defendant internist, Dr. Bryan Moline, for preoperative clearance for an upcoming orthopedic hip surgery. Swallow was 51 years old at the time and had a history of a neurological event in 1996. He was taking 325 mg of aspirin daily as…
Actos Trials Under Way in Illinois; Juries in California and Maryland Reach Verdicts
There are more than 2,000 cases filed in the Actos Multidistrict Litigation (MDL) pending before a United States District Court judge in the Western District of Louisiana. The Actos MDL bellwether cases involve identifying two of the best plaintiff cases and a third case selected by the defendant Takeda Pharmaceuticals. Takeda is…
$600,000 Medical Malpractice Jury Verdict for Leg Amputation
Nereida Sepulveda was an 80-year-old retiree who underwent a bilateral knee replacement surgery at Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center on Nov. 9, 2009. The surgery was performed by an orthopedic surgeon, Dr. David Hoffman. Sepulveda suffered an artery occlusion in the right leg as a complication of the procedure. The defendant, Dr. Iyer,…