The woman had gone to the surgeon at New York Surgical Associates on January 27, 2021, complaining of leg swelling that she had been experiencing for 25 years…medicalmalpracticelawyers, $3.36M New Jersey Medical Malpractice Settlement For 11 Unnecessary Surgeries On Leg
The surgeon allegedly diagnosed her with arterio-venous malformations and scheduled her for embolization procedures, without ordering an MRI or having evidence to support his diagnosis. The surgeon then performed eleven embolization procedures on the woman over the next eleven months.
After the last surgery, the woman developed pain and her left leg turned purple, which the surgeon allegedly told her was a normal post-operative symptom, and then injected her with lidocaine and a nerve block.
The woman then went to a hospital where she was diagnosed with a hematoma and compartment syndrome that was caused by increased pressure within the closed muscle compartment that restricted blood flow and nerve function. The woman underwent an emergent fasciotomy as well as multiple debridement procedures to avoid the need for amputation. Her medical care included a one-month hospitalization and she required multiple surgeries.
The woman presently takes opiates and gabapentin for constant nerve pain, and she will require more surgeries in the future, for peroneal nerve decompression and tarsal tunnel release, followed by excision of skin and surgery to lengthen the tendon. The woman is not expected to regain complete function or feeling in her left leg and she has permanent scarring from the surgeries.
The defendant surgeon reportedly lost his medical license after an investigation by the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office.