My husband had his first post-hospital appt. w/ a neurologist , yesterday.

[LaraMN]

She explained alot to him.
Foremost, that we were apparently either lied to or misinformed a bit about a few things.

He was told that by the cardiologists that a piece of plaque must have been scraped from his artery during his angiogram, causing the stroke.

The neurologist said that wasn't possible; it had to be a blood clot for the TSP to dissolve it fully. She said the only way she could see that happening was if a bit of blood built up on the end of the cardio catheter, and they loosened it when they extracted the catheter.

His MRI shows a significant area of brain damage, but it's a few weeks old, so she thinks the area of dead tissue is somewhat smaller than it appears in the image.

She said that his papers call the event an "accidental stroke."

She also said, most upsettingly, that from everything she saw from his medical records, cardio work and family heart history, pre-angiogram, the angiogram was a completely unnecessary procedure, and that they never should have ordered it. She said she doesn't understand why they ordered it for him, in the first place.

I'm a bit upset.

He has more appointments- with a speech therapist, and for a baseline neurologic exam, but was very pleased with the appointment itself, and how thorough it was.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

1. Oh, jeez, that's awful!

There's one more appointment you might consider making -- with a lawyer.

[LaraMN]

4. I think we should at least consult with an OUTSIDE cardiologist,

and talk to legal aid, if there seems to be grounds for anything. I'm not sue-happy; that's for DAMN sure, but I think we have a responsibility to hold people accountable, if there has been negligence and misinformation on the part of the hospital or doctors.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

11. You don 't need to go to legal aid.

For something like this you'd go to a private personal injury lawyer who handles medical malpractice - they work on a contingent fee basis. Get that second opinion and if it looks like somebody screwed up, do consider calling a lawyer (and don't wait too long).

[LaraMN]

13. Ah!

Duly noted! I have little to no experience with figuring out who to consult with issues like this. I'll definitely talk to him about getting a second opinion, particular due to the conflicting information we've gotten.

[Gormy Cuss]

5. A lawyer who will have another cardiologist review the records, for example.

It's distressing when one specialist (in this case, a neurologist) contradicts another one so strongly.
That would get my attention, for certain.

[Richardo]

2. .

Best to you, your husband and family, Lara. You have so much on your plate. :hug:

Glad you have gotten at least SOME satisfaction.

[LaraMN]

7. Thanks.

It's hard when we just don't know who to believe, and have no specialized knowledge to enable us to sense when we're being fed a line of bull, regarding medical issues.

[wildhorses]

3. i would be upset , too. --

have you guys gotten a second opinion at any point along the way:shrug:

[LaraMN]

8. Not from anyone outside the hospital.

I think that's a good idea, though.

[wildhorses]

15. most definitely yes!!

i wish you guys had gotten one before the procedure.

:hug:

[GirlinContempt]

6. Wow uhm....

That's awful. But, good that the dead tissue is smaller and you have someone new!

[LaraMN]

10. She seemed very thorough and very frank.

I think that's what we need, in his case.

[GirlinContempt]

14. Yes, those are good qualities.

:hug:

[zanne]

9. I'm wishing you courage and determination...

Your husband will probably go through some trying and frustrating times during his rehabilitation; and so will you. Please keep us posted if you feel down or discouraged. Anything that takes time requires alot of support. God bless you.

[LaraMN]

12. Thanks!

He's doing very well, overall. We were fortunate that he doesn't have severe, debilitating issues. I don't know how we would've dealt with it, if he had.

[crim son]

16. Jesus Christ.

So much for thinking the best of his physician. "I'm sorry" isn't going to cut it, in this instance and I agree about a lawyer. No decent doctor would put a patient through such a major and inherently dangerous procedure, unnecessarily. I'm sorry if I wasn't supportive of your concerns in the past, LaraMN. Thank God your husband is doing so well.

[bullwinkle428]

17. It sounds like the doctor was literally willing to jeapordize his life

in order to make money on an unnecessary procedure... :mad:

Our health-care system is so wonderful! :sarcasm:

[Omphaloskepsis]

18. I know a few doctors..

They turn people away. There is no shortage of clients. If anything, they didn't want to be sued for not being thorough enough.

[bullwinkle428]

21. Perhaps no shortage of clients, but still an assembly-line mentality

seems to be at work with some physicians. I was being treated by a gastroenterologist who wanted to give me a THIRD damn colonoscopy (2nd to be performed by him) in the space of a few years! The first two were negative as far as showing anything that could have been causing my gastronomic distress. Probably too much information for the Lounge, but I figured I had to provide the appropriate background!

The only reason I had gone back to him was to see if I could get some kind of medication to control my symptoms. I got disgusted and just went back to my family doctor who was willing to try some prescriptions, but suggested I first try using an OTC medication as a preventative. This turned out to be highly effective, so I'm fine today. Full disclosure...my brother is a family practice physician, so I don't have any kind of built-in bias against the medical profession.

[davsand]

19. Most docs don't volunteer that kind of stuff.

It must be that Neurologist's opinion that this is a particularly bad screw up because usually docs don't volunteer that kind of info on another doc's work. Usually it is like pulling teeth to get one doc to say ANYTHING critical about somebody else. Neuro docs are in a very high risk practice (just as bad as OB-Gyns are!) and they are especially sensitive to the idea of getting nailed for mistakes.

You need a med malpractice lawyer, and I'd suggest you do it sooner rather than later. I'd also suggest that you contact any lawyers you know locally and ask them who THEY would hire to represent them in a med malpractice case. Some of the best guys I've ever seen in that arena are the low key ones that don't really advertise much.

Find a good lawyer and they will know who you need to see for that second opinion on the Cardio stuff. You already have a second opinion about the cause of the stroke (based on what the neuro told you yesterday) so you can prove damage already. A lawyer will want to talk to you about this one.

I'm sorry you are dealing with this, and I'm glad the prognosis is a positive one. I'd urge you to consider doing something about the malpractice issue simply because then there is a record of how that particular doc screwed up.


Laura

[BlueIris]

20. Normally, I would never suggest this, because despite what I've posted here,

I actually do think our society is a bit too litigious, but: get a lawyer. You may not like what he/she has to say, and you may decide not to pursue legal action, but: Jesus Christ.

[Blue Diadem]

22. If I were you, I'd contact a medical malpractice lawyer asap.

He/she will have medical people go over the records and I'm betting they'll be very interested in what the neurologist said.

Better to do it earlier rather than later. Besides the statue of limitations, one never knows what might happened to records..a portion of my sister's disappeared while she was still in ICU. That was shortly after her Dr., out of the blue, pleaded with us to not sue him /them. A nurse from ICU told us about the records..otherwise we'd never have known.

[Shakespeare]

24. Second that. There is a real injury here that may be the result of malpractice.

Not only do you and your husband deserve to be "made whole," as they say in legal parlance, but legally keeping the medical profession on its collective toes benefits us all with better quality of care.

Good thoughts, prayers, vibes and a big :hug: for you.

[ThomCat]

23. I'm glad you have a doctor who explains things.

My neurology and my pain management doctor are both like that. And so is my current physical therapist. When I find people like that I hold on to them.

I hope your husband can make a very substantial recovery. :hug:

[ceile]

25. Oh, LaraMN

I'm so sorry. At least she was frank and forthcoming. I do agree with others on here-get a lawyer.
For you and your fam...:hug:

[GoddessOfGuinness]

26. This might account for your husband's cardiologist's outburst...

that you mentioned here a week ago or so. S/he's scared of a malpractice suit, so s/he blamed the victim.

[southlandshari]

27. Woah!

Things are pretty serious if one doctor is willing to so freely contradict and criticize another like that. The most important thing is that your husband is getting the care he needs, and my thoughts and prayers are with you, Lara. Down the road, a consultation with a lawyer may really be appropriate, and I don't say that lightly.

PM me if you ever need to vent or if a Moon Pie might help during the tough times.

:hug: