Legal Question in Medical Malpractice in Florida

Went for a physical, then had a stroke

In September of 2002 I went to a family practice physican and asked for a complete physical. I told him that I had a poor family history which included heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure and stroke. Both of my parents and many of my siblings died from these problems. I was 53 yrs old, slightly overweight and smoked, but not heavily. The physician's ''Complete'' physical consisted of some blood work and an EKG. 6 months later I had a stroke that has left me with a left side diability and now I have seziures due to the brain injury. This stroke was caused from a clot in my coroid artery. Should the doctor have sent me for more tests other than what he did such as a stress test or dopler scan on my arteries that may have caught the blockage early enough?


Asked on 7/21/07, 7:45 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Elizabeth Herd Morgenstern & Herd, P.A.

Re: Went for a physical, then had a stroke

First, let me tell you that if you had a stroke sometime in March of 2003 and you suspect that the physician who examined you in September 2002 failed to do something he should have, your statutory period of two years may have already run.

With that being said, if the examination in September 2002 was the first time that this particular physician had examined you and your physical examination (commonly known as HEENT for head, ears, eyes, nose and throat), your vitals including your blood pressure, ECG and your routine blood work were all normal, I don't believe that the standard of care would include more testing without some sign or symptom indicating that further testing were necessary. With your family history it might have been advisable, but I fear that reasonable doctors might disagree about whether it was required.

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Answered on 7/23/07, 9:10 am


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