Articles Posted in Misdiagnosis of Heart Attack

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Mr. Doe., 66, presented to a hospital emergency room shortly before midnight, complaining of chest pain. He underwent an EKG and testing of his troponin levels; both tests allegedly were “nonspecific.” After Doe began belching excessively, treating physicians and medical providers allegedly administered a gastrointestinal cocktail.

Doe fell asleep and was later discharged and sent home. The next evening, Doe returned to the emergency room, complaining of continued chest pain.

He was transferred to another facility where testing revealed a 100% occlusion, blockage in his coronary artery. Doe also was treated for shock, stroke, acute kidney injury and respiratory failure among other things.
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David Detweiler, 73, was suffering from chronic atrial fibrillation, a condition where a patient has an irregular heartbeat or a heartbeat that is faster than an acceptable rate. He also had other cardiac issues. He was a long-time patient of cardiologist Dr. Mitchell Greenspan.

Dr. Greenspan cleared Detweiler to undergo an aortobifemoral bypass to treat his aortoiliac occlusive disease. An aortobifemoral bypass is surgery to redirect blood around narrowed or blocked blood vessels in the abdomen or groin areas. The surgery is performed to increase blood flow to the legs.

A vascular surgeon did the procedure without complications. Detweiler was transferred to the hospital’s ICU in stable condition following the surgery.
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Laurence Seng was seen at a hospital emergency room where he complained of a persistent cough, chest heaviness and burning following an outpatient urological procedure.

Seng, who vomited in the ER, was administered a gastrointestinal cocktail in an effort to relieve his chest symptoms. However, his pain level increased. An osteopath, Dr. Joseph Robinson, diagnosed Seng as having a persistent cough and discharged him to home the same evening.

At home, Seng continued to experience chest heaviness and developed a racing heart. The next morning, his wife discovered that he was unresponsive. Seng, 66, died of a myocardial infarction. He was survived by his wife and four adult children. Seng’s wife, individually and on behalf of his estate, sued Dr. Robinson, alleging that he chose not evaluate Seng for a potential cardiac cause of his symptoms. Plaintiff alleged that he should have ordered an EKG and a blood test.
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Mr. Doe, 56, had a history of hypertension and dyslipidemia. He experienced shortness of breath over a three-month period and consulted Dr. Roe’s physician assistant. The physician assistant, who was a named defendant in this case, performed an examination reported as normal. Mr. Doe then underwent an in-office EKG, which showed a normal sinus rhythm.

Mr. Doe was scheduled for a stress test and a follow-up visit approximately one month later. However, before these appointments took place, Mr. Doe suffered a fatal cardiac arrest.

Mr. Doe had worked as a part-time security guard and was survived by his wife and two adult daughters.
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Jodi Hall sued Dr. Roberto P. Cippola for medical malpractice, claiming that he had violated the applicable standard of care by not referring Jason Hall, Jodi’s husband, to a hospital emergency room. Jason had gone to St. Joseph’s PromptCare complaining of chest pain.

The receptionist at the urgent care center asked Jason to describe his symptoms. Her notes said: “Left upper chest pain, was moving a lot of metal today, ‘cramping in neck and arms sometimes.'”

The applicable standard of care called for sending a patient to the emergency room if his chest pain was “suspected to be of cardiac origin.”
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