Thevatheril and Masini Obtain Defense Verdict In High-Stakes Medical Malpractice Case
Swanson, Martin & Bell, LLP attorneys Aiju C. Thevatheril and Isabella A. Masini secured a defense verdict on behalf of their client, a family medicine physician, in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois.
This case involved the death of a 51-year-old man. Our client, a family medicine physician, agreed to the hospital admission of the patient for complaints of left arm pain. The patient underwent a complete cardiac workup, which included an EKG, stress test, myocardial perfusion scan, troponins, and echo, all of which yielded normal results. Cardiologist consultant cleared the patient for discharge from a cardiology perspective.
The patient came back to Defendant a week later with severe left arm pain up to 10 out of 10. As the cardiac tests had recently come back negative and the patient had no cardiac complaints, the Defendant suspected that the pain was due to a musculoskeletal issue rather than a cardiac problem.
At trial, Thevatheril and Masini addressed many inconsistencies in the plaintiff's case and noted that the Defendant appropriately relied upon the extensive cardiologist's workup, appropriately concluded the pain was likely musculoskeletal, the standard of care did not require transfer or urgent angiography, and the patient did not die of myocardial infarction, but rather, of respiratory depression due to untreated sleep apnea, alcohol, and Norco.
Plaintiff asked the jury for $7,800,000-9,300,000. The jury returned a verdict of not guilty for the Defendant. The case was tried before Judge Thomas M. Cushing.
Aiju C. Thevatheril focuses his practice on the defense of medical negligence and catastrophic injury claims. He represents hospitals and healthcare providers in cases involving professional negligence, particularly those with catastrophic damage. Learn more about Aiju and his practice here.
Isabella A. Masini represents hospitals, physicians, nurses, and other healthcare providers in medical negligence cases. Additionally, Isabella represents clients in product liability, environmental, and other general tort litigation matters. Learn more about Isabella and her practice here.
