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Wix Corp. v. Davis9/16/2005
fall and resulting physical injuries he suffered on September 20, 1996, but it is not evidence indicating that the fall and the physical injuries caused his heart condition.
Dr. Chandler also was asked whether Davis's physical activity at work, which included occasionally exerting himself through the use of his upper extremities, from 1991 through September 20, 1996, could have affected the progression of his heart condition during that five-year period. Dr. Chandler's answer to that question, although in the affirmative, does not constitute substantial evidence in support of the circuit court's judgment for a number of reasons. First, Dr. Chandler noted that he was "speak theoretically because it's difficult to prove these issues." In addition, Dr. Chandler was answering a question concerning the effect on Davis's heart condition of his physical exertion repeatedly throughout a five-year period, not a question specifically aimed at the effect of the particular exertion by Davis on September 20, 1996. As noted previously, Davis first noticed symptoms relating to his cardiac condition in 1989 or 1990, before his demotion at work and approximately six years before the activities in which he engaged on September 20, 1996. Davis's heart condition was formally diagnosed in 1991. Dr. Chandler testified that he was unable to determine when Davis's heart condition became as severe as it did. In other words, Davis has not presented evidence from which it fairly can be determined that Davis's activities on September 20, 1996, caused an abrupt or significant increase in the blockage or the obstruction within Davis's coronary arteries. "It is a well established principle that evidence presented by a [workers'] compensation claimant must be more than evidence of mere possibilities that would only serve to 'guess' the employer into liability." Hammons v. Roses Stores, Inc., 547 So. 2d 883, 885 (Ala. Civ. App. 1989).
In light of the foregoing, we conclude that Davis has failed to establish that his cardiac condition was caused either by the injuries he suffered on September 20, 1996, or by the physical activities in which he engaged on that date. The circuit court's conclusion that Davis is entitled to coverage under the Workers' Compensation Act for the cost of medical treatment for that cardiac condition, therefore, was in error. The circuit court's judgment is reversed, and this cause is remanded to the circuit court for the entry of a judgment consistent with this opinion.
REVERSED AND REMANDED.
Crawley, P.J., and Thompson, Pittman, and Bryan, JJ., concur.
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