A Minnesota couple recently filed suit against a doctor who failed to diagnose their 5-year old daughter with cancer for a year.  According to the misdiagnosis lawsuit, the physician’s delayed diagnosis decreased her chances of survival from 60 percent to 40 percent.  Now, doctors estimate the girl has a 5 percent chance of surviving.

A lower court would not hear the case because of a “reduced-chance” law in Minnesota that prevents misdiagnosis cases from being heard unless the victim’s chances of survival are less than 50 percent.  The lower court felt that the child’s chance of survival was still likely, and that their claim fell under the state’s “reduced-chance” law, preventing them from being able to address the case.

However, the parents appealed to a Minnesota Court of Appeals, which ruled that the case could proceed because their daughter’s chances of survival were made unlikely by the doctor’s negligence.

Last week, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives passed a measure designed to limit the punitive damages awarded in nursing home abuse lawsuits filed in the state with a 103-89 vote.  Senate members will now vote on the bill–HB 1907.

Specifically, the legislation proposes capping punitive damages at 200 percent of compensatory damages awarded in medical negligence lawsuits that name nursing, long-term care, assisted living, and personal care facilities as defendants.  However, HB 1907 does not apply when the defendant intentionally or knowingly acted negligently.

The bill, which is sponsored by Rep. Glen Grell, is similar to a measure which limits punitive damages in medical negligence cases filed against doctors in Pennsylvania.

If you or a loved one has been the victim of nursing home abuse, contact the Philadelphia nursing home abuse lawyers of Lowenthal & Abrams, P.C. at 215-238-1130 to learn more about how we can help you.

Friday, a Florida teen won $12.6 million in a medical negligence lawsuit concerning a medication error that caused her to lose both of her arms and legs.  Defendants in the lawsuit included the University of Miami’s Miller School of Medicine, a nurse, and several doctors.

According to the lawsuit, the teenager was born with multiple intestinal problems, leading doctors to remove her spleen and other organs.  Because the spleen protects the body from viruses and bacteria, a nurse at the medical school administered a medication created to protect individuals without spleens from infections.

8 months after receiving the medication, the girl became sick and had to go to the emergency room.  Doctors discovered that she had a bacterial infection.  The infection caused several blood clots to form in the girl’s legs and arms, and eventually she developed gangrene.  All four of her arms and legs had to be amputated above the joint.

The medication that the nurse administered at the medical school was found to be expired for 5 months when it was injected into the patient.  Experts testified that the nurse was negligent for not administering a sufficient dose of medication to protect the girl from infection.

Last month, a jury in in Lawrence County, Pennsylvania found a hemorrhoid doctor negligent in the delayed diagnosis of a patient with rectal cancer.  The patient, a 32-year old mother of three, was awarded $2 million for past medical expenses and pain and suffering.

According to the lawsuit, the mother went to the defendant’s office in May 2008 after experiencing rectal bleeding.  The doctor administered an anoscopy, but no other testing, and subsequently diagnosed the patient with hemorrhoids.  Over the following 16 months, the doctor performed hemorrhoid treatments on the patient, despite the fact that the patient did not experience any relief in symptoms.

The mother then decided to see another doctor who determined that she was suffering from Stage III rectal cancer.  The plaintiff needed chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery.

The court found that the defendant did not follow the guidelines put in place by the American Gastroenterology Association and other medical regulators that require doctors to perform an endoscopy, colonoscopy, or flexible sigmoidoscopy if a patient is experiencing rectal bleeding.

Contact the Philadelphia delayed cancer diagnosis attorneys of Lowenthal & Abrams, P.C. by calling 215-238-1130, if you or a loved one experienced a delayed cancer diagnosis and would like to speak with a medical malpractice lawyer about your situation.

A Santa Fe couple have filed a medical malpractice lawsuit against a hospital after the wife almost died after being given the painkiller Dilaudid.

The woman was admitted to the hospital for severe abdominal pain in 2010 when she was intravenously given Dilaudid. According to court documents, she became sick and the pain intensified, but nurses continued to give her the medication. Later that day her husband says he found her twitching, foaming at the mouth, eyes rolled back, and turning purple.

The complaint states that the hospital staff should have known that patients who are morbidly obese are at a higher risk for obstructive sleep apnea, which can intensify when given narcotic analgesic medication like Dilaudid. She says she has suffered emotional trauma after experiencing cardio-pulmonary arrest.

If you or someone you love suffered due to hospital negligence, contact the Philadelphia hospital negligence lawyers of Lowenthal & Abrams, P.C., at 215-238-1130.