Facet Joint Injections

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CASE: facet joint injections

FACTS: The plaintiff was a 63-year-old female seen by the defendant, an anesthesiologist, for facet joint injections (FJI) on her cervical spine. The defendant performed a series of four injections. First, he did not obtain fluoroscopy imaging views in two planes to determine the proximity of his needle to plaintiff’s spinal cord. Second, he did not inject contrast dye to confirm his needle was correctly positioned in the joint space. Third, he injected with particulate steroids rather than non-particulate. And finally, he mistakenly injected into levels c5-6 and c6-7 of the spine, rather than the correct levels at c4-5 and c5-6. 

After the final injection, plaintiff immediately felt an electric shock radiating from her neck down through her right arm, followed by weakness, numbness and paralysis. Despite this, the defendant waited seven days after the procedure to order an MRI, which revealed a lesion at the site of injury. He then waited another four days to share the MRI results with the plaintiff.

DEFENSE: The defendant claimed his methodology fell within the standard of care.

INJURIES: The plaintiff suffered a severe injury to her spinal cord. She has significant nerve, sensory, and motor deficiencies in her right extremity. She can no longer use her right hand. She suffers from chronic headaches and chronic pain syndrome. These injuries limits her ability to perform all aspects of daily life, including exercise, cooking, housework, personal care, etc.

SPECIAL DAMAGES: Medical bills: $112,153.92.

SETTLEMENT: The parties agreed to settle for a confidential amount.

PLAINTIFF’S COUNSEL: Randolph J. Reis, Esq. & Kimberly Kirkland, Esq.

NAMES/COUNTY: Anonymous v. Anonymous