Robert R. Sappe Successfully Obtains Summary Judgment in Favor of Dutchess County Orthopedic Spinal Surgeon

Robert R. Sappe successfully obtained summary judgment in favor of a Dutchess County, NY orthopedic spinal surgeon, dismissing a medical malpractice complaint filed against him.

The then 52-year-old plaintiff first saw Feldman, Kleidman, Collins & Sappe LLP’s (FKC&S) orthopedic spinal surgeon client in August 2020, complaining of two years of lower back pain radiating into his left buttock and down his left leg. The spinal surgeon recommended, and then performed, lumbar spinal surgery known as an extreme left lateral approach decompression and interbody fusion (XLIF) on October 6, 2020.

Following that surgery, the plaintiff started complaining of pain in his right knee and thigh, opposite from the side where he originally had pain. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was done which demonstrated right-sided compression of the nerve roots exiting the lumbar spine. Therefore, to address the plaintiff’s complaints of right sided pain, the spinal surgeon recommended and performed a second spinal surgery on November 11, 2020, to relieve the pressure on the right-sided nerve roots. After that second surgery, the right-sided pain appeared to improve, but did not completely resolve.

The plaintiff last saw the spinal surgeon in June 2021 and appeared to be doing well, though he still had residual right thigh pain. He then decided to seek treatment elsewhere.

In December 2021, the plaintiff saw a neurologist in Albany complaining of severe right leg pain, weakness and atrophy. Electromyography (EMG) testing was ordered by the Albany neurologist which demonstrated chronic right femoral neuropathy which has been deemed permanent. The plaintiff alleged that FKC&S’s spinal surgeon client was negligent for causing a permanent right femoral nerve injury. The plaintiff’s expert orthopedic spinal surgeon supported his claim by giving an opinion that FKC&S’s client was negligent for failing to adequately flex plaintiff’s hip and knee during the October 6, 2020 surgery, and failing to properly monitor the plaintiff during that surgery.

Mr. Sappe successfully argued to the court that the hospital records demonstrated that the plaintiff’s hip and knee were flexed during the surgery, and that a permanent femoral nerve injury could not have been caused in the way that the plaintiff and his expert contended. He further proved that proper intra-operative neuro-monitoring was done and showed no evidence of intra-operative nerve injury.

Additionally, Mr. Sappe established that lumbar spinal surgery carries a risk of nerve root injury due to the need to manipulate the vertebrae when placing cages in the disc space. Thus, a nerve injury is a known complication of the surgery, and the plaintiff was told of such risk before surgery. Mr. Sappe also pointed out that the plaintiff’s symptoms of right knee and thigh pain did not develop until almost a week after surgery, which cast doubt on whether the injury was caused by the surgery at all.

The plaintiff opposed FKC&S’s motion with an orthopedic spinal expert, but the court was not impressed or convinced by the opinions of the plaintiff’s expert, and found them unreliable because they were conclusory, unsupported by the hospital and medical records, and internally contradictory. Therefore FKC&S’s client was completely exonerated.

Summary judgment is a pretrial motion that promptly resolves legal actions where the parties have no legitimate issues with any material fact. By obtaining summary judgement, Mr. Sappe spared FKC&S’s client the imposition of being away from his practice and patients for several weeks during a trial. For more than 38 years, our team of experts at FKC&S have been advocating for the best possible outcome for our clients. Call us at (845) 897–5199 or contact us here to receive a free consultation today.

Originally published at https://www.fkcs.law on July 26, 2024.