Q: Hi, I'm wondering if I can sue the Orthopedic doctor who failed to diagnose and treat my ankle for bone marrow edema...
You see, I fell in January of this year and broke my fibula. The orthopedist I was sent to was very impersonal from the beginning. A cast was place and I had x rays several times until the cast was removed the end of February.. my ankle was very swollen so I was given a walking boot and sent to therapy.. By May there had been little to no improvement but the orthopedist didn't care. He refused to sign an additional therapy prescription, gave me no work restrictions and told me that eventually it will get better in spite of my ankle still being very swollen and very painful. I heard him tell his assistant that I should stop babying it and get back to work. I sought a second opinion and after MRI and CT scan, I have bone marrow edema and moderate joint degeneration. The original doctor SHOULD have listened and looked for the source of the swelling and continued pain in my ankle. Because the original orthopedist wouldn't listen, I have suffered and limped for 5 months...
A: Probably not. It appears your damages would be limited to pain, suffering and some additional discomfort. That's not enough to warrant spending the amount of money it would take to prove that medical malpractice occurred. This even assumes any did occur which I am not convinced did. In evaluating medical malpractice, the first step is always whether the case would be economically feasible if there is malpractice and your case does not meet this threshold requirement.
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