Marin, then 40 years old, was rushed to the local hospital with a cold, pulseless leg and was diagnosed with severe trauma and massive degloving to his left lower extremity with multiple comminuted segmented fractures, a complete transection of the bone and lacerated blood vessels, including the major artery and vein, causing extensive blood loss.
In the operating room, doctors initially placed an external fixation device on the femur. Then, they performed a revascularization procedure (to try to restore blood flow to the lower leg) and a fasciotomy (to relieve swelling and help blood travel into the vessels toward the foot). Finally, though, after several hours, Marin’s leg was surgically amputated above the knee.
Marin sued the driver who hit him and recovered his full policy limits of $100,000. He then sued the hospital and the doctors (employed by the hospital) claiming that they prematurely abandoned their attempts to save his leg and should not have amputated it.
A Manhattan jury concluded that the vascular surgeon had departed from accepted medical practice when he decided that no sufficient measures would control plaintiff’s bleeding in his leg and proceeded with the amputation. The orthopedic surgeon was exonerated.
The jury then awarded plaintiff pain and suffering damages in the sum of $6,000,000 ($2,000,000 past – nine years, $4,000,000 future – 30 years).
Read the full article here: http://www.newyorkinjurycasesblog.com/2016/12/articles/amputation-injuries/leg-crushed-then-surgically-amputated-after-man-struck-by-car/
