SUMMARY JUDGMENT DISMISSING MEDICAL MALPRACTICE ACTION-GEOFFREY H. PFORR

Geoffrey H. Pforr successfully obtained summary judgment in favor of our client, a Board Certified hematologist/oncologist, dismissing the plaintiff’s medical malpractice action in a case involving a claimed failure to diagnose and treat diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), as well as complications arising from the same, in the 30-year-old decedent. The decedent, who subsequently underwent amputations of the parts of all four extremities survived for approximately three years from the alleged malpractice, albeit in a largely nonresponsive state. During the course of her admission to the hospital, the decedent suffered from a transfusion reaction after which she developed acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and suffered cardiac arrest leading to severely diminished brain function.  Our client performed a hematology consultation after those events. The plaintiff’s essential claim was that our client failed to diagnose and treat thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP) leading to the advancement of the severity of the decedent’s condition. While our client’s assessment included thrombocytopenia, most likely consumptive, there was no evidence of TTP. Significantly, within several days following the consultation, the decedent was transferred to another hospital where an ADAMTS 13 test was performed. That test returned results that ruled out the presence of TTP. After making a prima facie showing on our client’s behalf through our client’s testimony as well as that of a Board Certified expert in hematology/oncology with specific expertise in the diagnosis and treatment of TTP, the plaintiff was unable to refute the same leading to dismissal of the malpractice cause of action against our client.