Iodine contrast media kills man with known shellfish allergy
A 41-YEAR-OLD MAN WITH CHEST PAIN was admitted to his local hospital, where he received a diagnosis of acute coronary syndrome. After treatment in the emergency department, the patient was admitted to the telemetry unit by an internist, the partner of the patient’s primary care physician. The patient’s admission records noted that he had an allergy to shellfish.
The next morning, a cardiologist was called in. The cardiologist then called in an interventional cardiologist, who scheduled a cardiac catheterization. The interventional cardiologist ordered 1 dose of steroids, followed a few minutes later by contrast iodine. The patient immediately suffered a severe allergic reaction and died.
PLAINTIFF’S CLAIM The internist who admitted the patient to the telemetry unit took an incomplete history regarding the patient’s allergies (although the admission records contained that information). No information about the claims against the 2 cardiologists is available.
THE DEFENSE No information about the defense is available.
VERDICT $4.7 million gross verdict in Florida.
COMMENT In addition to considering the risk of dye loads and carefully checking renal function, remember to assess for allergy when administering contrast agents. Failure to do so in this case led to the death of the patient and a multimillion-dollar verdict.