SKETCHES OF COURT: Jury finds no malpractice in differential diagnosis
Court sketch by Alba Acevedo
In this courtroom sketch, Hon. Ellen Spodek listens as defendant’s attorney Salvatore Leto (standing), of the law firm Wagner, Doman & Leto, summarizes his position for the jury in the medical malpractice trial Jackson v. Afam, et al.
Lisa Jackson, a 32-year old mother of three, had been complaining of abdominal pain when she visited her gynecologist at Afam. In February 2013, the doctor recommended a surgical procedure and performed a diagnostic laparoscopy in April during which he found and treated pelvic adhesions. Jackson sustained a complication from the surgery that eventually resolved, but Jackson alleges that her pain continued until she later underwent surgery for gallstones and gallbladder removal.
Andrew Friedman (at right), of the law firm Friedman & Sanchez, represents Jackson, who is suing her gynecologist and his practice for negligence. Jackson alleges that the defendants’ medical malpractice was inclusive of making an improper diagnostic work-up and in recommending and performing the diagnostic laparoscopy, as well as in failing to find gallbladder disease.
Leto maintained that the diagnostic laparoscopy was a logical next step in determining what was causing Jackson’s pain, and that Jackson gave informed consent to the surgery with its known risks. Leto claimed that the differential diagnosis of pelvic adhesions, for which Jackson was treated, was not the result of a departure from good and accepted standards of care. He maintained that her injuries were resolved and that her gallbladder disease symptoms appeared later.
The jury did not award damages, siding with the defendants in the trial that concluded last week in Kings County Civil Term.
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