Illustrated Verdict, Inc. © All rights reserved.

Case Overview:

This case involved a man who presented at the ER with an "extensive" Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) in his right leg veins. He had no shortness of breath or EKG issues that would have indicated a pulmonary embolism. The only abnormal vital sign that he presented with was a high heart rate of 105. They treated him with Lovenox (an anticoagulant that prevents further blood clots from forming) and the eventual plan was to move him over to Coumadin. He left the ER walking and had refused a wheel chair. On his way out of the ER, he fell out of his car and hit his head. A nurse in the parking lot saw him immediately after he fell and started CPR. They brought him back into ED and discovered that he had a saddle pulmonary embolism in his lungs and had also developed a subdural hematoma (brain bleed) from hitting his head. The nurse that had given him CPR had broken up the clot in his lungs and restored blood flow. After he was stable, he was transferred to another hospital where he had multiple surgeries for the subdural hematoma and eventually died from the brain injury. The jury found in favor of the defense.