Pamela Ann Glover v. H. Marcus Cox
Published: Dec. 23, 2003 | Result Date: Sep. 18, 2003 | Filing Date: Jan. 1, 1900 |Case number: 143174 Verdict – $0
Judge
Court
Shasta Superior
Attorneys
Plaintiff
Defendant
Arthur W. Curley
(Bradley Curley Asiano Barrabee Abel & Kowalski)
Experts
Plaintiff
Gregory Goddard
(medical)
Susan Whitaker
(medical)
Defendant
Joel M. Rothfeld
(medical)
Paula Kokal
(medical)
Nestor Karas
(medical)
Facts
After feeling some episodic discomfort from her wisdom teeth, the plaintiff, Pamela Glover, made a visit to Tom Vodak, DDS. Because the plaintiff's wisdom teeth were impacted and would never come in properly, Vodak referred her to the defendant, H. Marcus Cox, DDS, an oral surgeon, for removal of the four teeth, specifically Nos. 1, 16, 17, and 32. On June 6, 2000, following a consultation of less than 10 minutes, the defendant performed the surgery to extract the wisdom teeth using intravenous sedation. During the removal of tooth No. 17, the lower left third molar, and specifically a residual follicular sac, the defendant transected the lingual nerve. Transection of the lingual nerve is known to cause complete numbness of the anterior two-thirds of half of the tongue. The defendant then stitched the ends of the nerve together and spoke with the plaintiff's mother. The plaintiff's mother contended that the defendant immediately admitted to her that he had made a mistake by severing the lingual nerve. The defendant contended that he informed the plaintiff's mother that he may have severed or torn the lingual nerve, or a branch of it. He contended that he told the plaintiff and her mother that they should wait until the next morning when the local anesthetic would have worn off to see if the plaintiff was still experiencing numbness, an indication that the lingual nerve was severed. The defendant claimed that he told the plaintiff's mother that if this was the case, he would then refer the plaintiff to a microsurgeon who could attempt to repair the nerve. When the plaintiff reported numbness in her tongue the next morning, the defendant referred her to Anthony Pogrel, DDS, an oral surgeon at the University of California, San Francisco, for micro-neurosurgical repair. The plaintiff agreed to have the repair surgery to reconnect the nerve performed on June 14. The plaintiff claimed that the operation to repair the lingual nerve was unsuccessful. However, when Pogrel tested her six months post operation, Pogrel found a 50 percent return of sensation to her tongue. The plaintiff sued the defendant, alleging medical malpractice and lack of informed consent.
Damages
Because the plaintiff was a student, there were no claims of loss wages.
Injuries
The plaintiff suffered complete numbness and loss of taste on the entire left side of her tongue and some numbness of her left lower lip. She claimed that the numbness caused her to frequently bite her tongue, have slightly slurred speech and drool out of the corner of her mouth. She also claimed that her swallow pattern was altered because she chewed on only one side of her tongue. One of the plaintiff's experts testified that the plaintiff exhibited an abnormal swallow. The plaintiff sought $250,000 for pain and suffering. Most of the medical and dental bills were paid by insurance. The defendant contended that the plaintiff's claim of complete numbness of half of her tongue is not consistent with the injury because the posterior one-third is not innervated by the lingual nerve.
Deliberation
one hour
Poll
12-0
Length
four weeks
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