ZDR Negotiates Settlement for Misdiagnosed Chest Pain

The attorneys at Zevan Davidson Roman recently represented the family of a woman whose chest pain was incorrectly diagnosed and later died of a heart attack. Her untimely death is a troubling example of how the negligence and carelessness of healthcare professionals can have the worst of consequences.

Background

Our client’s wife visited an emergency room in Southern Missouri complaining of chest pain. After a cursory examination, a hospitalist diagnosed her with costochondritis, or musculoskeletal chest pain, and sent her home. Tragically, the next day, she was found dead after suffering a heart attack. We accepted this case and immediately began working to uncover the exact circumstances surrounding the woman’s emergency room visit.

Consulting Healthcare Experts

Our attorneys consulted an emergency room doctor and cardiologist. These experts explained that the emergency room doctor and hospitalist violated the standard of care when they failed to obtain repeat testing, such as a repeat troponin and repeat EKG, which would have shown that our client’s wife had some abnormal heart activity and heart enzymes. The standard of care required that she be kept in the hospital for monitoring and heart medications.

Our experts concluded that this was a likely misdiagnosis that unfortunately took the patient’s life. If the emergency room staff had admitted her to the hospital that night and given her the appropriate medications, she would not have had a heart attack and would have gone on to live many additional, healthy years. A misdiagnosis is a type of medical malpractice that is all too common in healthcare.

Settlement & Compensation

Our attorneys calculated that under Missouri law, our client’s claim was worth approximately $1.2 million dollar. We successfully negotiated a confidential settlement between our client and the doctors and hospital that failed to diagnose her. In cases like this, we recognize that no amount of compensation can offset the loss of a loved one. Still, we fight for what is fair, so that our clients may continue their lives with peace of mind.

We are proud to represent families who have lost a loved one due to misdiagnosed chest pain. If you believe you may have a medical malpractice case related to a physician’s failure to correctly diagnose chest pain and prevent a heart attack, contact us as soon as possible.