Queens County (NY) Supreme Court
A woman under went tubal ligation following the cesarean delivery of her third child. During the procedure, the physician had difficulty locating the left fallopian tube. After numerous attempts, he ligated and cut what he thought was the left tube. Postoperatively, the woman began to hemorrhage and required a transfusion to replace 2,000 cm3 of blood. She also developed atelectasis and congestive heart failure. She was stable 6 days later and subsequently discharged. Following the procedure, the woman never again experienced menstruation and developed signs of menopause. She was placed on hormone supplements.
In suing, the woman alleged that prior to the procedure, she told the physician she had previously undergone surgery for the removal of a right ovarian cyst and that she had no left fallopian tube. She further claimed that the blood loss and shock she sustained from the physician’s negligence in cutting vascular tissue caused a pituitary hypothalamic dysfunction and the premature onset of menopausal symptoms.
The physician contended that the cut he made was on a vestigal piece of fallopian tube.
- The case settled for $475,000.