 |
 |
to fill out a simple form to connect to Personal Injury Lawyers in your area.
|
|
|
|
|
TIRADO v. O'HARA5/3/2000
This is an appeal from an order granting appellees' motion for a new trial in a medical malpractice case. Appellant Dr. Emilio Tirado surgically repaired appellee John O'Hara's hernia in March 1993. During the surgery, appellant placed one stitch through and another one around Mr. O'Hara's femoral nerve, which damaged the nerve and allegedly caused him to suffer pain in the right leg. At trial, the jury returned a verdict in favor of Mr. O'Hara and, based on interrogatories, set his damages at a total of $77,332.03. Although the jury also found in favor of Mr. O'Hara's wife, Jo, on her claim of loss of consortium, it awarded her no damages.
Appellees timely filed a motion for a new trial in which they argued that the jury's award of damages was inadequate and was clearly against a preponderance of the evidence. The trial court agreed and granted the motion. On appeal, appellant contends that the trial court erred in granting appellees' motion for a new trial. We disagree and affirm.
At the time of trial, Mr. O'Hara was fifty-one years old and had worked primarily as a carpenter. The surgery in question was Mr. O'Hara's third repair of a hernia located on the right side. His first hernia surgery occurred in 1990. He experienced a second hernia in 1992. He was also involved in a car accident at that time in which he ruptured a cervical disc. He received treatment for this injury from Dr. Jay Lipke, who kept him off work until January 1993. While convalescing from the neck injury, he had the second hernia repaired by Dr. Kerry Ozment in July 1992.
Mr. O'Hara soon developed another hernia that was repaired by appellant in March 1993. At the trial held on December 8, 1998, Mr. O'Hara testified that he experienced excruciating pain in his right leg the moment he regained consciousness from surgery. He said that the pain has persisted since the surgery but that its intensity comes and goes. He described the pain as a constant burning sensation that also felt like needles or briars were being stuck into his leg. He said that it was painful for his leg to be touched; that he wears overalls ninety-five percent of the time; and that he sleeps with a pillow between his legs. Mr. O'Hara further testified that he
has had trouble sleeping as much as four times a week and that he takes medication to help him sleep. A release procedure was done on the nerve in July 1993, and Mr. O'Hara did say that the pain had been worse prior to the procedure. Mr. O'Hara has not worked since the surgery, and he testified that the main disabling feature of his problem was the pain he felt in his right leg.
In terms of medical treatment, Mr. O'Hara was seen for his complaints of leg pain by Dr. Victor Martinez, a vascular surgeon, in June 1993. From his examination, the doctor suspected an injury to the right femoral nerve. He referred Mr. O'Hara to Dr. Jorge Martinez, a neurosurgeon. This doctor agreed with that diagnosis, and exploratory surgery was scheduled for July 22, 1993. Both Martinez doctors participated in the surgery in which they dissected the nerve and performed a neurolysis. During the procedure, they discovered that the right femoral nerve was entrapped in a large amount of scar tissue that was compressing the nerve. They also found that a suture had pierced the nerve and that another suture had been placed tightly around the nerve, which contributed to its compression. Dr. Jorge Martinez testified that it would take a year for the nerve to heal and that he would consider the damage to the nerve permanent if there was still pain after that time. It was also said that, if the sutures had been placed there before the surgery performed by appellant, Mr. O'Hara would have previo
Page 1 2 3 4 Arkansas Personal Injury Attorneys
Personal Injury Lawyers
|
| |
to fill out a simple form to connect to Personal Injury Lawyers in your area.
|
|