Recently in Medical Malpractice Category

Attorneys with the personal injury law firm of Sheldon J. Schlesinger P.A., won a $14 million jury verdict on behalf of a local father and optometrist left bed-ridden and paralyzed resulting from a botched, unnecessary procedure seven years ago.

According to the suit, heard by Judge Charles Green in Broward County Circuit Court, Francis Ziadie was suffering dizziness and slurred speech when he arrived at the emergency room at Memorial Regional Hospital in Hollywood in May 2002. Doctors there gave him aspirin and the anti-platelet medication, Plavix. His symptoms subsided on medical therapy. Ziadie was admitted overnight for observation.

The next morning, Ziadie complained of short-term slurred speech and numbness in his hand. A CAT scan and magnetic resonance angiography showed no evidence of a stroke. Doctors diagnosed transient ischemic attacks caused by left internal carotid artery dissection, or a separation of the inner layer of the carotid artery. The aspirin / Plavix regimen is considered standard of care, as in most cases, the dissection will heal itself within three to six months, said Crane Johnstone, Ziadie's lead trial attorney from Schlesinger Law Firm in Fort Lauderdale. Valerie Conzo was co-counsel on the case.

Hoang Dinh Doung, M.D., an interventional neuroradiologist from Radiology Associates of Hollywood, P.A. was consulted. Doung recommended an immediate procedure to insert a stent into the artery. During the procedure, Doung punctured the arterial wall. Because Ziadie was on large doses of blood thinners, blood flowed from the puncture, pooling around his brain. In the recovery room, Ziadie had slurred speech and right-sided weakness. Instead of addressing his problems, nurses sedated him. By the time doctors realized the problem hours later, the bleeding had caused massive pressure damage to the brain stem and caustic damage to brain tissue. Ziadie, at one time an active 46-year-old optician and father of four, was discharged almost three months later after extensive rehab. Today, he spends his days in a hospital bed and wheelchair in the home of his 76-year-old mother, Olivia, who cares for him round-the-clock.

"The jury realized that this was a preventable injury, and that Mr. Ziadie should never have undergone that procedure," Johnstone said. "His legs are paralyzed, he has no bowel or bladder control. He struggles to string sentences together. He can't even get out of bed or feed himself."

Defense counsel from Bunnell, Woulfe claimed Mr. Ziadie suffered from a rare "reperfusion injury." Another defendant, David M. Feldbaum, MD, a surgeon who was part of the team treating Mr. Ziadie, was found not liable.

The five-man, one-woman jury didn't buy Dr. Duong's argument, and returned a verdict in under six hours. In determining damages, the jury found that Ziadie, now 53, will require skilled nursing care for the rest of his life. Johnstone also argued successfully that the best care will be provided to Mr. Ziadie in his home, as opposed to a nursing facility. The jury awarded $5 million to Mr. Ziadie for his future care needs, and $8 million for pain, suffering and mental anguish. Francis Ziadie's minor sons were each awarded $250,000.

SOURCE Boardroom Communications

PARKER WAICHMAN ALONSO LLP, one of the nation's premier plaintiffs' litigation firms today obtained a monumental Sixty Million ($60,000,000) Dollar verdict in a medical malpractice action awarded to a Bronx woman, Allison Hugh against Ferdinand A. Ofodile, M.D., a Queens County Plastic Surgeon.

Alison Hugh went to Dr. Ofodile for a thigh lift procedure. As a result of the procedure, Ms. Hugh sustained significant injury and deformity to the labia of her vagina which is permanent and cannot be surgically corrected.

Dr. Ofodile failed to inform and provide Ms. Hugh with informed consent and failed to inform her of the risks involved in this type of procedure including the risk of vaginal opening and deformity. Dr. Ofodile failed to use proper surgical techniques by leaving too much tension in the skin of her groin area.

The Bronx jury found that Dr. Ofodile failed to appropriately advise Ms. Hugh about the risks of this type of procedure and that Dr. Ofodile deviated from good and accepted medical practices in his surgical technique.

The jury unanimously awarded Ms. Hugh Ten Million ($10,000,000) Dollars in past pain and suffering and Fifty Million ($50,000,000) Dollars in future pain and suffering.

The case was tried by Andres F. Alonso, a partner in the law firm of Parker Waichman Alonso LLP who has consistently obtained large verdicts and multi-million dollar settlements.

SOURCE Parker Waichman Alonso LLP

The mother of a 12-year-old autistic boy who died while in the care of a psychiatrist at a group home has filed a wrongful death and medical malpractice lawsuit claiming overmedication and improper care led to the boy's death.

The lawsuit was filed in Miami-Dade circuit court Tuesday by the boy's mother, Martha Quesada. In it, she alleges Denis Maltez died in 2007 after receiving an overdose of anti-psychotic drugs.

"This is a clear case of a 12-year-child who perished because he was given a lethal combination of off-label, dangerous, anti-psychotic drugs to control his behavior without appropriate consent, administration and supervision," said Howard Talenfeld, Quesada's attorney and partner with Fort Lauderdale law firm, Colodny, Fass, Talenfeld, Karlinsky & Abate, P.A., in Fort Lauderdale. Partner Maria Abate is co-counsel on the case.

"Tragically, this case is one of many cases where foster children and developmentally disabled children are given powerful drug to control their behavior instead of utilizing appropriate behavioral interventions," Talenfeld said. "This is an important first step in seeking remedy for Ms. Quesada's loss, and raising awareness of the cavalier prescription, administration of medications to control behavior with little regard for possible counter-indications or devastating results."

At the time of his death on May 23, 2007, Denis was under the care of psychiatrist, Dr. Steven L. Kaplan, at the former Rainbow Ranch group home, owned and operated by David Glatt. Both are named in the lawsuit.

The Miami-Dade County Medical Examiner found that Denis died of Central Serotonergic Syndrome. This resulted from "the co-administration of multiple psychotropic medications with no monitoring or supervision," the lawsuit claims. The drugs stimulated overproduction of serotonin - a naturally occurring chemical that help regulate a person's mood. This proved lethal, the suit claims. Denis, who had severe autism, died in a van after being restrained by group home staff.

The lawsuit claims Glatt replaced Denis's regular visits to Jackson Memorial Hospital with on-site care by Dr. Kaplan without Quesada's consent. During Denis's time at the facility, Kaplan only visited him twice. Kaplan prescribed a regimen of medications described "as chemical restraints to control Denis's behavior." Those included Depakote, an anti-seizure drug used for mood-stabilization; the tranquilizer Clonazepam; and anti-psychotics, Seroquel and Zyprexa. Several of the drugs lack Food and Drug Administration approval for use on children. They also warn of possible side-effects.

Quesada's lawsuit comes a month after the death of Gabriel Myers. The 7-year-old foster child had been prescribed a variety of mental health drugs, and later hanged himself. The use of psychiatric medications on Florida foster children now is being studied by the state Department of Children and Families.

SOURCE Colodny, Fass, Talenfeld, Karlinsky & Abate