Mantiply v. Hoffman

263 So. 3d 1193
Louisiana Court of Appeal·Decided January 16, 2019·No. 18-292·Published·Cited by 1 cases

Opinion

KYZAR, Judge.

In this medical malpractice action, the Plaintiffs, John and Melissa Mantiply, appeal the judgment of the trial court dismissing their claims against the Defendant, Dr. Joseph I. Hoffman, Jr. The judgment arose following a trial by jury and in accordance with the jury verdict. For the reasons set forth herein, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

*1196FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

On May 21, 2008, Plaintiff John Mantiply underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left knee to repair a torn meniscus. The surgery was performed by Defendant Joseph Hoffman, M.D., an orthopedic surgeon working as an independent contractor at the Veterans Administration (VA) Hospital. Days after the surgery, John began experiencing pain, swelling, and drainage in his left knee, causing him to return to the VA Hospital multiple times. John was seen by numerous doctors at the VA Hospital, though Dr. Hoffman remained his primary provider post-surgery until June 9, 2008, when Dr. Hoffman aspirated and cultured the fluid from John's left knee and injected the knee with cortisone on the same day without awaiting the results of the culture. Hospital records from the VA do not show an official diagnosis regarding the cause of John's knee problems. On June 26, 2008, John met with Dr. Michael Brunet, an orthopedic surgeon at Mid-State Orthopedic Clinic, regarding his continuing leg pain and lack of mobility.

The sequence of events leading up to the June 9, 2008 aspiration and cortisone injection and the current suit are as follows:

• May 21, 2008: John has arthroscopic surgery performed by Dr. Hoffman at the VA Hospital to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee.
• May 26, 2008: John presented to the Emergency Room (ER) at the VA Hospital, reporting redness, swelling, and bleeding from his left knee. The attending ER physician, Dr. Fitzgerald, aspirated 12ml of fluid from the knee and prescribed the antibiotic amoxicillin.
• May 27, 2008: John followed up with Dr. Hoffman, who examined the knee and noted clear drainage from the needle site. No diagnosis was given, though Dr. Hoffman recommended John continue with his prescribed amoxicillin and return for his regularly scheduled follow-up appointment on May 29.
• May 29, 2008: John returns to the orthopedic clinic to see Dr. Hoffman, relating constant pain in his knee, though there was no more fluid drainage at that time. That evening, however, John returned to the ER complaining of drainage from the surgical site and again saw Dr. Fitzgerald, who noted no redness or swelling.
• May 30, 2008: John called the ER Department at the VA twice complaining of excess fluid draining from his knee. John did not present to the ER for his symptoms.
• June 4, 2008: John returned to the VA for a scheduled appointment but was sent to the ER and seen by Dr. Del Valle due to swelling and continued pain in his left knee. X-Rays were taken that revealed a supra patella effusion and soft tissue swelling. John's knee was wrapped in an ace bandage, and he was discharged with instructions to keep the leg elevated.
• June 5, 2008: John again returned to the orthopedic clinic for a follow-up appointment with Dr. Hoffman, where Dr. Hoffman noted continued drainage of clear fluid from John's left knee. Dr. Hoffman ordered a complete blood count (CBC) on this date and his notes state that this was a "very strange course of events." Dr. Hoffman renewed John's prescription for amoxicillin, though no official diagnosis was noted in the records.
• June 7, 2008: John presented to the ER complaining of sharp pains and *1197severe burning in his left knee. Dr. Fitzgerald noted no redness or swelling and recommended John follow-up with Dr. Hoffman.
• June 8, 2008: John experienced a syncopal episode where he lost consciousness due to the pain in his knee and was admitted to the VA Hospital. A second CBC was ordered, which showed a higher white blood count (WBC) than the previous test. Dr. Clement, who saw John during this visit, also ordered that his "Sed rate" and uric acid level be checked.
• June 9, 2008: While still in the hospital, John was examined by Dr. Hoffman. Dr. Hoffman did an arthrocentesis, in which he aspirated fluid from John's knee, and submitted the fluid for culture. Before the results of that culture were received, Dr. Hoffman also injected cortisone into John's knee to help with pain.
• June 10, 2008: Still hospitalized, John reported no complaints of pain in his knee to his internist, Dr. Ganji, who was treating him for the syncopal episode. Dr. Ganji ordered a CBC, which showed a higher WBC than the test done on June 8, and ordered John to be placed on Clindamycin, a potent antibiotic.
• June 11, 2008: John's WBC count was notably lower than the previous day, and he was released from the ER. The culture from June 9 came back showing a small number of staphylococcus aureus organisms, i.e. the results of the synovial fluid culture was positive for trace amounts of staph. John claims it is during this hospital stay that he first noticed the restriction of mobility in his left knee.
• June 19, 2008: John reported to the orthopedic clinic to see Dr. Hoffman, stating that his knee had become locked, though he reported no pain in the leg. Dr. Hoffman advised John to continue his prescription of Clindamycin and to return in three weeks. No official diagnosis regarding the ongoing issues with John's knee is ever recorded.

The June 19, 2008 appointment is the last encounter John has with Dr. Hoffman. Within a week of that appointment, John met with Dr. Brunet, who urgently advised him to seek additional treatment as the possibility of infection was serious. John returned to Dr. Brunet the next month for continuing knee issues, at which time Dr. Brunet suspected either a chronic infected knee or gouty synovitis. Eventually, Dr. Brunet performed a synovectomy surgery on July 23, 2008 on John's left knee, noting a thickening of the synovial lining. The mobility in John's left leg purportedly did not return, an assertion challenged by the defense at trial.

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Mantiply v. Hoffman, 263 So. 3d 1193 (La. Ct. App. 2019).

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