Lane, Michael L. v. Viskase Companies, Inc.

2019 TN WC 168
CourtTennessee Court of Workers' Compensation Claims
DecidedNovember 21, 2019
Docket2018-01-0313
StatusPublished

This text of 2019 TN WC 168 (Lane, Michael L. v. Viskase Companies, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Tennessee Court of Workers' Compensation Claims primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Lane, Michael L. v. Viskase Companies, Inc., 2019 TN WC 168 (Tenn. Super. Ct. 2019).

Opinion

FILED Nov 21, 2019 04:02 PM(ET)

TENNESSEE COURT OF WORKERS' COMPENSATION CLAIMS

TENNESSEE BUREAU OF WORKERS’ COMPENSATION IN THE COURT OF WORKERS’ COMPENSATION CLAIMS

AT CHATTANOOGA MICHAEL L. LANE, ) Docket No. 2018-01-0313 Employee, ) v. ) VISKASE COMPANIES, INC, ) State File No. 30803-2018 Employer, ) and ) PROPERTY AND CASUALTY INS. ) Judge Thomas Wyatt CO. OF HARTFORD, ) Carrier. )

REVISED EXPEDITED HEARING ORDER FOR MEDICAL BENEFITS (DECISION ON THE RECORD)

On November 20, 2019, the Court considered Michael L. Lane’s request for an on- the-record decision of his claim for medical and temporary disability benefits based on his alleged work-related ruptured wrist tendon. Viskase Companies, Inc. did not object to Mr. Lane’s request, and the Court determined it had sufficient evidence to decide the issues on the record.

The parties submitted two issues for decision: (1) whether Mr. Lane’s injury arose primarily out of and in the course and scope of employment, and (2) whether he established entitlement to medical and temporary disability benefits. For the reasons below, the Court holds that Mr. Lane satisfied his burden of proof but awards him medical benefits only.

History of the Case

On January 13, 2018, Mr. Lane injured his left wrist when he pulled on a “stuck” core-chuck latch with greater force than normal. Viskase sent him to Lakeway Urgent Care Center without offering him a panel. A nurse practitioner at Lakeway noted Mr. Lane’s history of straining his left wrist when he “tried to pull a latch on the reel[.]” The nurse ordered x-rays and wrote: We discussed the fact that we believe the patient’s current wrist pain is an exacerbation of his chronic arthritis. We explained that the recent changes in Tennessee Workers [sic] Comp law now require an injury to be more than 50% related to the incident at work to be eligible for compensability. Due to the mechanism of injury, pulling on a latch during routine work, we do not feel that this incident meets that criteria.

Dr. John Sanabria, Lakeway’s owner, testified by deposition that he is personally involved in all decisions made for workers’ compensation patients at Lakeway, and he agreed with the nurse’s decision on diagnosis and causation.

Viskase later offered Mr. Lane a panel from which he selected Lakeway. Mr. Lane returned to Lakeway and saw Dr. Sanabria, who ordered an MRI. The MRI revealed degenerative changes in the left wrist, including at the base of the left thumb, and showed a full thickness tear of the extensor pollicis longus (EPL) tendon. Dr. Sanabria described Mr. Lane’s tendon rupture as “spontaneous” and stated it “seems reasonable to conclude that the complete tendon rupture may have occurred while pulling on the latch[.]” But he also wrote:

More than likely, the extensive osteophyte formation (bony spurring) at the base of the thumb frayed the tendon over time and weakened it to the point where it finally ruptured. In my medical opinion, it would be unreasonable to conclude that a sudden complete rupture of the [EPL] in an otherwise healthy wrist could occur from “pulling a latch.”

Dr. Sanabria testified on causation that, under the “recent changes in TN Workers’ Comp Law,” Mr. Lane’s injury was not compensable because he “has severe chronic pathology in the wrist which easily accounts for greater than 51% of causation for the condition.” Despite his torn tendon, Dr. Sanabria released Mr. Lane as “[fit] for duty without restrictions” and suggested he see his private physician for an orthopedic referral. Viskase denied Mr. Lane’s claim based on Dr. Sanabria’s opinion.

Mr. Lane saw an orthopedist on February 15, following Dr. Sanabria’s advice. This physician noted that Mr. Lane “was at work when he was pulling on something; it would not open, he had to pull more forcefully and he then felt a pop in his left wrist.” He referred Mr. Lane to orthopedist Dr. Robert Ivey for a surgical consultation.

Mr. Lane saw Dr. Ivey on March 1. Dr. Ivey recorded Mr. Lane’s history of “pulling on a heavy core chuck latch and felt a pop in his wrist.” He further noted Mr. Lane’s complaint of not being able to straighten his left thumb since the injury. Dr. Ivey offered the following causation opinion in his treatment notes: “I feel that he had a traumatic rupture of his [EPL] tendon. This a work compensable condition, which arose

directly out of the course of his employment. He also has non work compensable thumb arthritis.”

Dr. Ivey recommended surgery, which he performed on March 22. In surgery, Dr. Ivey confirmed the tendon rupture shown on MRI and repaired it. Mr. Lane and a private health carrier paid Dr. Ivey’s charges, including for therapy ordered by Dr. Ivey.

Dr. Ivey’s deposition testimony confirmed the causation opinion in his notes. He stated “[the ruptured tendon] was a work compensable condition that occurred when he was pulling on that heavy chuck latch.” Later in the deposition, Dr. Ivey considered Dr. Sanabria’s opinion that the pre-existing arthritis in Mr. Lane’s thumb frayed the tendon in question and represented more than 50% of the causation of the ruptured tendon. Dr. Ivey disagreed with that opinion because the ruptured tendon in Mr. Lane’s left wrist is “in a different [anatomical] zip code from the thumb arthritis.” Dr. Ivey confirmed it was his opinion “that within a reasonable degree of medical certainty the cause of the tendon

rupture over 50 percent actual predominant efficient cause was pulling of the chuck latch[.]”

In his deposition, Dr. Sanabria testified that Dr. Ivey was one of the best hand and wrist surgeons in the area and had a “perfect” reputation in the medical community. He stated that he often referred patients to Dr. Ivey for surgical treatment. However, he disagreed with Dr. Ivey’s statement that the tendon rupture was not in the same “zip code” as the arthritis at the base of Mr. Lane’s thumb. Dr. Sanabria cited MRI findings in support of his opinion that the tendon rupture occurred in an area adjacent to the arthritis and osteophytes at the base of Mr. Lane’s wrist. Dr. Sanabria also confirmed his previous opinion that the primary cause of Mr. Lane’s ruptured tendon was the osteophytes from pre-existing, non-work-related arthritis, which frayed the tendon over time and made it more susceptible to rupture. He stated that a normal, healthy tendon would not generally rupture under the pressure of simply opening a latch.

Mr. Lane missed work from the injury date until Dr. Ivey released him with restrictions on July 31. Dr. Ivey’s records indicate that Mr. Lane’s wrist was placed in a cast; Mr. Lane needed to keep his wrist elevated; he should undergo therapy; and, over the course of time, Mr. Lane should advance to more activity as tolerated. Dr. Ivey’s June 18 note indicated that Mr. Lane stated he did not feel he could resume his regular job due to his injury, which Dr. Ivey did not confirm or deny. None of the records submitted to the Court includes documentation that Dr. Ivey or any other physician took Mr. Lane off work due to his work injury.

Regarding medical benefits, Dr. Ivey testified that Mr. Lane’s ruptured tendon would not have healed on its own, and thus surgery was necessary to treat the condition. He further testified that the bills he charged for treating Mr. Ivey were “reasonable expenses for this treatment protocol.” Mr. Lane submitted two billing records from Dr.

3 Ivey’s practice documenting charges, insurance payments, patient payments, and adjustments relating to the treatment of his ruptured tendon.

Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law

At this Expedited Hearing, Mr. Lane must present sufficient evidence that he is likely to prevail at a hearing on the merits. Tenn. Code Ann.

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Related

§ 50-6
Tennessee § 50-6
§ 50-6-102
Tennessee § 50-6-102(14)(E)
§ 50-6-239
Tennessee § 50-6-239(d)(1)

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Bluebook (online)
2019 TN WC 168, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/lane-michael-l-v-viskase-companies-inc-tennworkcompcl-2019.