Medical Verdicts
NOTABLE JUDGMENTS AND SETTLEMENTS IN BRIEF
PATIENT’S CLAIM When the patient went into cardiac arrest, the fetus was deprived of oxygen for 10 minutes, leading to cerebral palsy. The failure to provide adequate oxygen was negligent.
DOCTOR’S DEFENSE Not reported.
VERDICT A $1 million settlement was reached with the delivering physician and hospital, and a $1.5 million settlement with the nurses.
Woman with untreated preeclampsia dies
A 36-year-old woman pregnant with her 2nd child was diagnosed with hypertension by her obstetrician. She was sent to the hospital, where the child was delivered by cesarean section. After suffering convulsions, the mother went into a coma the same day. She was transferred to another hospital and died 6 days later.
PATIENT’S CLAIM Untreated preeclampsia led to eclampsia and death.
DOCTOR’S DEFENSE The patient was monitored properly, but suffered a sudden, unexpected decline.
VERDICT $2.6 million settlement.
The cases in this column are selected by the editors of OBG Management from Medical Malpractice Verdicts, Settlements & Experts, with permission of the editor, Lewis Laska, Nashville, Tenn (www.verdictslaska.com). The available information about the cases is sometimes incomplete; pertinent details may be unavailable. Moreover, the cases may or may not have merit. Still, these cases represent types of clinical situations that may result in litigation and are meant to illustrate variation in verdicts and awards. Any illustrations are generic and do not represent a specific legal case.
