Uterine rupture, child stillborn: $3.8M net award
At 35 weeks' gestation, a woman went to the emergency department (ED) with abdominal pain, fast heartbeat, and irregular contractions. Her history included three cesarean deliveries, including one with a vertical incision. She was admitted, and a cesarean delivery was planned for the next day. After 8 hours, during which the patient’s condition worsened, an emergency cesarean delivery was undertaken. A full rupture of the uterus was found; the baby’s body had extruded into the mother’s abdomen. The child was stillborn.
PARENTS’ CLAIM The stillbirth could have been avoided if the nurses had communicated the mother’s worsening condition to the physicians.
DEFENDANTS’ DEFENSE After the hospital and physicians settled prior to trial, the case continued against the nurse in charge of the mother’s care and the nurse-staffing group. Negligence was denied; all protocols were followed.
VERDICT A $2.9 million Illinois verdict was returned. With a $900,000 settlement from the hospital and physicians, the net award was $3.8 million.
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Where did rare strep A infection come from?
A 36-year-old woman reported heavy vaginal bleeding to her ObGyn. She underwent endometrial ablation in her physician’s office.
The next day, the woman called the office to report abdominal pain. She was told to stop the medication she was taking, and if the pain continued to the next day, to go to an ED. The next day, the patient went to the ED and was found to be in septic shock. During emergency laparotomy, 50 mL of purulent fluid were drained and an emergency hysterectomy was performed. Three days later, the patient died from pulmonary arrest caused by toxic shock syndrome. An autopsy revealed that the patient’s sepsis was caused by group A streptococci (GAS) infection.
ESTATE’S CLAIM The patient was not a proper candidate for endometrial ablation because of her history of chronic cervical infection. The ObGyn perforated the cervix during the procedure and tried to conceal it. At autopsy, bone wax was found in the rectal lumen that had been used to cover up damage to the cervix. The ObGyn introduced GAS bacteria into the patient’s system. The ObGyn’s staff failed to ask the proper questions when she called the day after the procedure. She should have been told to go directly to the ED.
DEFENDANTS’ DEFENSE The ObGyn did not perforate the cervix or uterus during the procedure. GAS infection is so rare that it would have been difficult to foresee or diagnose. Potentially, the patient had a chronic
cervical infection before ablation.
VERDICT A Texas defense verdict was returned.
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DURING INSERTION, IUD PERFORATES UTERINE WALL; LATER FOUND BELOW LIVER
On July 21, a 46-year-old woman went to an ObGyn for placement of an intrauterine device (IUD). Shortly after the ObGyn inserted the levonorgestrel-releasing intrauterine system (Mirena, Bayer HealthCare), the patient reported severe pelvic and abdominal pain. On July 26, the patient underwent surgical removal of the IUD.
She was discharged on July 29 but continued to report pain. She was readmitted to the hospital the next day and treated for pain. She was bed ridden for 3 weeks after IUD-removal surgery, and had a 3-month recovery before feeling pain free.
PATIENT’S CLAIM The ObGyn was negligent in perforating the patient’s uterine wall during IUD insertion, causing the device to ultimately migrate under the patient’s liver.
DEFENDANTS’ DEFENSE Uterine perforation is a known complication of IUD insertion. The IUD escaped from the patient’s uterus at a later time and not during the insertion procedure.
VERDICT A Florida verdict of $208,839 was returned; the amount was reduced to $161,058 because the medical expenses were written off by the health-care providers.
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Was travel appropriate for this pregnant woman?
A woman with a history of two premature deliveries and one miscarriage became pregnant again. She received prenatal care at an Army hospital. She traveled to Spain, where the baby was born at 31 weeks’ gestation. The baby required treatment in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) for 17 days. The child has cerebral palsy, with tetraplegia of all four extremities. She cannot walk without assistance and suffers severe cognitive and vision impairment.
PARENTS’ CLAIM The ObGyn at the Army hospital should not have approved the mother’s request for travel; he did so, despite knowing that the mother was at high risk for premature birth. The military medical hospital to which she was assigned in Spain could not manage a high-risk pregnancy, didn’t have a NICU, and didn’t have specialists to treat premature infants.
DEFENDANTS’ DEFENSE The ObGyn argued that he did not have access to the medical records showing the mother’s history. The patient countered that the ObGyn did indeed have the patient’s records, as he had discussed them with her.
