Legal Question in Medical Malpractice in Pennsylvania

Permanent Eye Damage From Contact Lenses

I have recently been diagnosed with severe dry eye syndrome. This has caused my tear glands to burn out and the natural lubrication that my eyes produce is close to being non-existent. I have lacrimal plugs now, I will be going on painful eye drops for 7-8 months to try and hopefully regenerate a tear gland in each eye. This has caused damage to my left cornea, creating double vision out of my left eye and loss of vision, and the potential for future, more severe damage is extremely high. My eye doctor indicated it was all caused strictly from wearing contact lenses and that I'm ''too young to have this severe of a condition''. Of course I was never informed that wearing contact lenses could cause this by the contact lense company or the optemetrist who prescribed my lenses over the years. Is there anything I can do? Lord knows you only get one set of eyes. Thank you in advance.


Asked on 6/02/04, 11:21 am

2 Answers from Attorneys

Re: Permanent Eye Damage From Contact Lenses

Doctors often make comments that make it sound like someone did something wrong, but getting them on a stand and stating that malpractice occured, ot there were inadequate warnings on a product is something else! Despite the advances in medicine, there are LOTS of grey areas.

FIRST, focus on your eye health! Then, take a breath, and go see an atty to have your case evaluated. You may or may not have a legal claim, but the only way to figure it out, is to have a good expert review your specific facts. Even IF you have a legal basis for a claim, an atty may still not want it, because it's just too difficult a case, or it doesn't have enough 'damages'. For example, I had a cancer case trial last year. When I got the case, I tried to hand it off (I do mostly construction/engineering trials) but NO ONE would take it. They said med-mal cases are tough, the cancer cases are the toughest, and the failure to diagnose are tougher yet... Fortunately I kicked their asses :)

I have a dental malpractice case going to trial on 6/21. NO ONE would take that because they said damages were less than $100,000, and the client was 83 (now she is 87!). They were afraid she'd die or her memory would fade. I'm sure this doctor will roll over when I get him on the stand, because he can't explain WHY he never finished his work in 6 years, and how her teeth rotted while he was treating her. We shall see!

In any event, there are a LOT of factors to consider: WAS there malpractice, was it bad enough to get a verdict (it is VERY VERY difficult to win a malpractice suit!), are the damages big enough to justify bringing suit and going to trial, etc.

I hope your eyes heal well! Your health is ALWAYS better than a big verdict!

My best to you.

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Answered on 6/02/04, 12:17 pm
Jerry Meyers Meyers Evans & Associates, LLC

Re: Permanent Eye Damage From Contact Lenses

My preliminary research does not reveal a relationship between tear duct function and contact lens wear. Has your opthalmologist said such a relationship exists? What is the mechanism? If I understood your problem better I might be of more help. Call 800 440-5297 or write me with further details.

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Answered on 6/02/04, 1:06 pm


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