Summary
SETTLEMENT: $2,000,000. VENUE: New York Supreme, NY. DATE: 04-03-2002
PLAINTIFF(S) ATTORNEY: Eric Morrison; Morrison & Wagner: New York, NY; Stuart Wagner; Morrison & Wagner; New York, NY
DEFENDANT(S) ATTORNEY: Linda Plona McMillan; McAloon & Friedman; New York, NY. EXPERT: None.
Injury
The treatment of a 2-year-old's leg fracture that led to the development of compartment syndrome was the subject of this action, which resulted in a $2,000,000 settlement, reached before jury selection.
Facts
On 8/28/98, the infant plaintiff presented for emergency room treatment for a fractured tibia after she fell from her stroller in her home. Following a course of skin traction, the child was placed in a Spica cast from toe to thigh while remaining hospitalized. After 24 hours, the child's toes became swollen and her foot was unresponsive to pin-prick. Instead of removing the cast to obtain pulses, hospital physicians modified the cast by braking it in select locations. After three days of continuous discoloration and foot immobility, doctors removed the cast and discovered marked skin and muscle necrosis extending from the ankle to mid-calf. A condition of four compartment syndrome was diagnosed due to a tight cast. The child underwent four separate fasciotomies for the removal of dead skin, muscle, and tissue to the lower leg. Depositions disclosed that the child's orthopedic and pediatric teams each sought to instruct the other to remove the cast, but an appropriate instruction was never entered into the chart. The child was placed in traction by an unsupervised hospital resident who performed the procedure while referring to a medical textbook.
Plaintiff is left with pronounced deformity to the lower leg resulting from excised muscle, skin, and tissue, with extensive scarring. She was outfitted for an orthotic brace, which permits her to walk relatively normally, but her foot is chronically inverted and shall require periodic surgery. Defendants would have argued that the child's spiral fracture rendered her a prime candidate for compartment syndrome regardless of the casting.
Verdict Information
This action resulted in a $2,000,000 settlement, reached before jury selection.
Note: The above material was originally published in VerdictSearch.com.
