Facts

In 2009, plaintiff John Doe, a 39-year-old employee of the zoo, suffered severe back pain, and went to an orthopedic surgeon for assessment. His scans showed severe stenosis of his spinal canal and a herniated disc. Surgery was recommended and during the surgery, the dura lining the spinal cord was pierced, and required repair.

Following surgery, the patient had a numb penis, then numbness in his right leg. Another MRI was done the following day, which was interpreted as demonstrating minimal compression on the cord, so the surgeon decided not to reoperate as he felt there was too much risk, and no compression on the thecal sac.

The patient ended up with cauda equina syndrome, impotence, incontinence requiring daily catheters, bowel difficulties requiring a daily bowel program, an unsteady gait, and constant pain requiring powerful medications.

Plaintiff is still employed, but the injury will affect his ability to work in the future.

PLAINTIFF'S CONTENTIONS:
Plaintiff contended through their experts, that the amount of bone removed in the surgery was inadequate to allow sufficient room for the manipulation required and then for swelling following the complication of the tear of the dura. Further, going back in to remove any material that was swelling or compressing the cord was mandatory.

DEFENDANT'S CONTENTIONS:
The defense provided experts and literature support for their contention that a tear in the dura is a risk of surgery, and the complications were unfortunate but not preventable. Further, going back in to reoperate carried significant risk, there was no compression on the cord and reoperation would not have changed the outcome.

Damages

The damages ranged from $500,000 to $4.3 million dollars depending on assumptions of either side's experts as to employment, future surgeries and offsets allowed in medical malpractice cases. Plaintiff's wife claimed loss of consortium.

Injuries

John Doe suffered impotence, incontinence, bowel impairment, unsteady gait and required use of strong pain medications for chronic pain.

Result

The case settled just prior to trial for the physician's available policy limits of $2 million.