 |
 |
to fill out a simple form to connect to Personal Injury Lawyers in your area.
|
|
|
|
|
Dennis v. Finish Line12/22/2000
James Newcombe, was consulted during Ms. Dennis's hospitalization for her complaints of chest pain and because she had an elevated blood glucose level. Dr. Newcombe opined that she might have bruised her heart in the accident. There was no specific treatment for the heart contusion, but the glucose level was brought down by changing her intravenous solution.
Ms. Dennis was discharged from the hospital on October 21, 1990, with pain medications and a continuous passive machine (CPM) to gently move the knee on a limited basis. At that time, she was ambulatory with a platform walker. She underwent five months of physical therapy for the knee, but regained only 80-85 degrees flexion, compared to a normal flexion range of 120-140 degrees. Consequently, on April 9, 1991, Dr. Butler performed an additional surgical procedure to repair and elongate the knee ligaments, remove adhesions and scar tissue, and improve flexion. She was hospitalized three days for this surgery, after which she again used the CPM and had additional physical therapy. Both courses of physical therapy also included treatment for low back pain and pain in her right hip. Her knee flexion improved significantly, but because of continued pain in the knee and hip, she received cortisone injections. Dr. Butler stated at trial that the change in her walking as a result of the knee injury could have affected her low back and right hip. An x-ray of the lumbar spine showed bulging at the L3-4 and L4-5 discs, but no eviden ce of herniation. Because of the back and hip problems, Dr. Butler referred her for additional physical therapy in December 1991. Ms. Dennis was on narcotic pain medicine from the date of the accident until March 10, 1992. At that point, Dr. Butler feared that, although she still needed pain medication of some kind, she could develop a dependency on narcotic pain medication, so he recommended a lesser pain medication.
In March 1992, at the request of the Louisiana Rehabilitation Services, Dr. Butler completed an estimated functional capacity form concerning Ms. Dennis. He estimated she would never be able to lift or carry objects weighing more than 25 pounds, and should never perform tasks involving crawling or climbing. He did not know what her former job had been, so expressed no opinion concerning whether she could return to that type of work. However, he concluded she could handle a full-time job within those restrictions, including one that would involve standing or walking eight hours with some rest breaks. He assigned no limitations concerning the use of her hand.
In 1994, Ms. Dennis underwent gallbladder surgery for a condition unrelated to the accident. However, because of adhesions from the splenectomy, Dr. Gravois could not perform an outpatient procedure that would have required only four punctures, rather than an incision, to remove the gallbladder. Instead, he had to hospitalize her, use general anesthesia, and open the abdomen with an incision in order to remove the gallbladder. This procedure left another scar on her abdomen. She was discharged from the hospital after three days.
Dr. Butler saw Ms. Dennis again in March 1997 to review her condition before trial. At that time, she still complained of a constant, severe throbbing pain in her low back and right hip. X-rays revealed mild scoliosis in her upper and lower lumbar spine, mild osteoarthritic changes in the lower lumbar spine, and spur formation and early arthritic changes of the right hip joint. He testified at trial that she had probably gotten as good as she was going to get in recovering from her injuries; the knee and hip problems were permanent and the pain was chronic. As a result of the knee injury, he assigned an anat
Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 Louisiana Personal Injury Attorneys
Personal Injury Lawyers
|
| |
to fill out a simple form to connect to Personal Injury Lawyers in your area.
|
|