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Delayed Diagnosis of Thoracic Dissection Causes Death of 42-Year-Old Husband/Father

Dave W. was dressing one morning when he felt a snap in the front of his neck, followed by pain in his chest and head. Thinking he may have suffered a heart attack, Dave went straight to the ER. Preliminary tests were run, and a heart attack was ruled out. Thereafter, other explanations were considered.

One of the possible explanations was a “thoracic aortic dissection.” The aorta is the largest artery in the body, and the thoracic aorta is the portion of the artery within the chest. A “dissection” occurs when the inner layer of the artery tears and blood begins to force its way between the inner and outer layers, creating a “false channel.” An aortic dissection is an emergency because the blood in this false channel can erode the outer layer, too, and the vessel will rupture. A ruptured thoracic dissection is rapidly fatal.

A CT scan was ordered to rule out the possibility of a thoracic dissection. It was interpreted as negative.

Because the pain didn’t go away, the doctors ordered another CT scan. That CT showed a dissection of the ascending thoracic aorta (the portion of the aorta closest to the heart). The radiologist quickly called the emergency department, and a thoracic surgeon was paged. Before the surgeon could make it to Dave’s room, however, Dave became unresponsive. Hospital personnel tried to resuscitate him, but it was no use. Dave died from a ruptured thoracic aorta. He was only 42 years old and left behind a wife and two young children.

Unfortunately when diagnosis errors happen, they can leave patients untreated and left to suffer. Dave’s wife hired The Eisen Law Firm to investigate. In reviewing the medical records, we discovered a major problem with the initial CT scan: it only showed a small portion of the thoracic aorta; it missed the critical area entirely. It was no wonder it was read as “negative.”

We retained top-notch experts in emergency medicine, radiology, and thoracic surgery to review the case. These experts concluded that Dave’s doctors should have made sure that the first CT scan that included the entire ascending aorta, not just a small portion of it. Had they simply looked in the right place, they would have had no trouble finding the problem.

Armed with this information, The Eisen Law Firm contacted the hospital to discuss a pre-suit resolution. The hospital recognized its mistake and appreciated the enormous amount of harm it had caused. A confidential, multi-million dollar settlement quickly was reached.