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Burns v. Pierce12/6/2000
NOT DESIGNATED FOR PUBLICATION
AFFIRMED
Appellant, Ronald Burns, appeals from a decision of the Arkansas Workers' Compensation Commission finding that he failed to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that surgical treatment performed by Dr. Joel Patterson was reasonable or necessary in relation to his compensable back injury. Appellant also appeals the Commission's decision concluding that he is not entitled to temporary total disability benefits.
Appellant sustained a compensable injury on April 22, 1997, while employed with appellee Gary Pierce Construction. Appellant injured his neck while placing steel on a roller to be cut by a saw. Appellee accepted Burns's injury as compensable and referred him to the Stamps Medical Clinic where he was treated by Dr. Gary Poole. Dr. Poole noted that appellant could not turn his head to the left and suffered from muscle spasms. Dr. Poole referred appellant to Dr. David Collins. Dr. Collins saw appellant on June 9, 1997. Appellant reported similar complaints to Dr. Collins, but did state that his condition had improved since the date of the injury and that he had not missed work. Dr. Collins arranged for appellant to undergo a cervical MRI and a nerve conduction study. The MRI was normal, and the nerve conduction study revealed a brachial plexopathy of the upper left extremity and mild carpal tunnel syndrome. Based on these results and appellant's continued complaints, Dr. Collins referred appellant to Dr. Scott Schlesinger, a neurosurgeon.
Dr. Schlesinger saw appellant on August 25, 1997, and reviewed the tests performed by Dr. Collins. Dr. Schlesinger believed appellant might have suffered from a stretch injury but did not think he could do anything for appellant neurosurgically. Dr. Schlesinger recommended appellant undergo physical therapy of the cervical spine and provided a prescription for medrol dosepak and motrin. While being treated by Dr. Schlesinger, appellant underwent a second cervical MRI, which was also read negative. Dr. Schlesinger last saw appellant in September 1997.
After appellant last saw Dr. Schlesinger in September 1997, he continued to experience pain in his neck and was ultimately seen by Dr. Joel T. Patterson, a second neurosurgeon, on November 2, 1998. Dr. Patterson's report indicates that appellant presented complaining of pain in the neck and left shoulder area as well as pain radiating down his left arm and numbness in his left hand. Based on appellant's complaints, Dr. Patterson believed appellant suffered from a brachial plexopathy or cervical nerve root compression. Dr. Patterson recommended a cervical myleogram, which indicated an attenuation of the left nerve root sleeve at the C3-C4 level. Appellant also underwent a CT scan of the cervical spine, which revealed a mild left paracentral osteophyte formation of the C3-C4 level on the left with compression of the adjacent thecal sac and emerging nerve roots. On November 24, 1998, Dr. Patterson opined that appellant suffered from left C3-C4 nerve root impingement. Dr. Patterson recommended cervical intervention, and on February 15, 1999, appellant underwent an anterior cervical diskectomy and fusion at C3-C4.
In May 27, 1999, Dr. Schlesinger prepared another report on appellant's condition and subsequent treatment by Dr. Patterson. Dr. Schlesinger admitted that the 1997 MRI did not look at the left C3-C4 level to any high-resolution degree, but stated that appellant's complaints of pain radiating down the arm were not consistent with a C3- C4 disk herniation. Dr. Schlesinger's report went on to state, however, that if appellant's neck and shoulder pain was caused by a C3-C4 disk herniation, that pain could be tra
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