Lawsuit filed after failure to diagnose led to multiple surgeries

Many doctors focus on seeking all of the answers when treating a patient. However, some in Massachusetts may seize what appears to be the obvious explanation for a person’s symptoms, potentially resulting in a failure to diagnose the real issue. One out-of-state man claims that doctors who assumed that his issues stemmed from a flare up of a previously diagnosed condition overlooked his the real problem.

The patient claims that he was experiencing severe abdominal pain in May 2011. He had previously suffered from Crohn’s disease but had not experienced any symptoms for approximately a decade. Doctors assumed that the pain he began experiencing in 2011 was a flare up of this condition.

However, it is now believed that the man was suffering from an ulcer which perforated. Because it was not diagnosed in a timely manner, he had to undergo multiple surgeries, ultimately leaving him in the hospital for approximately three years. Although an active man when he began experiencing these symptoms, he is now unable to work or take care of himself.

A Maryland jury recently agreed that the defendants in the case failed to meet an adequate standard of care. While it is expected to be reduced due to state caps, the man and his wife were recently awarded $28 million. A representative for the defendants in the case claims that they will appeal the verdict, arguing that the harm the man experienced was caused by parties who previously settled out of court.

Because of the award, the man and his wife say they can now afford to hire a full time caregiver as well as help them cope with the expense of the nutrition the man receives through a central line. Unfortunately, people in Massachusetts are also suffering as a result of a doctor’s failure to diagnose and other forms of medical malpractice. Victims have legal options available to them that allow them to seek recompense to help cope with medical bills and loss of wages, among others.

Source: The Baltimore Sun, “Baltimore jury awards $28 million damages in malpractice case“, Lorraine Mirabella, Sept. 4, 2015