Malpractice Lawsuits for Unnecessary Heart Stents by Dr. Mark Midei at St. Joseph Medical Center
A number of heart stents implanted at St. Joseph Medical Center in Towson, Maryland may not have been medically necessary. The malpractice lawyers at Saiontz & Kirk, P.A. previously represented individuals throughout Maryland. New cases are no longer being accepted. This page is maintained for informational purposes only.
Starting in early December 2009, a number of former St. Joseph hospital patients, and specifically patients of Dr. Mark Midei, received letters about their cardiac catheterization procedure with stent placement.
The letters acknowledged that subsequent clinical reviews of the procedure found different results than are indicated in the original cardiac catheterization report. For these individuals the stent placement may not have been necessary, exposing them to substantial health risks.
All St. Joseph stent lawsuits were reviewed by the lawyers at Saiontz & Kirk under a contingency fee agreement, which means that there are no fees or expenses unless a recovery is obtained. New cases are no longer being accepted. This page is maintained for informational purposes only.
PROBLEMS WITH STENT SURGERY AT ST. JOSEPH HOSPITAL
TOWSON, MARYLAND (BALTIMORE COUNTY)
St. Joseph Medical Center is a 345-bed hospital in Towson, Maryland owned by Catholic Health Initiatives, which is based in Denver, Colorado. The hospital is among the top 100 cardiovascular hospitals in the United States, and the St. Joseph cardiac catheterization center performs approximately 6,500 procedures a year at a cost of about $10,000 each. It turns out that many procedures performed in recent years may not have been necessary, and doctors implanted stents in patients who had “insignificant” blockages that could have been treated without a stent.
Hundreds of heart patients from St. Joseph who received a stent implant by Dr. Mark Midei have been notified that their condition may not have required a stent. It is believed that St. Joseph hospital letters starting being sent via Federal Express overnight delivery in early December 2009 and additional patients may continue to receive letters after this date as the investigation continues.
All of the patients who received a letter were treated by Dr. Mark Midei, a previously prominent surgeon, who has since stopped practicing and lost his privileges at the hospital.
After being told that they had blockages as high as 80% to 95% that required a stent placement, subsequent reviews have found that many patients only had minor blockages, sometimes as low as 10%. Typical guidelines call for a blockage of at least 70% for a stent procedure to be necessary, with blockages of less than 50% generally regarded as insignificant and not posing enough of a problem to justify the risks associated with stent surgery.
UNNECESSARY STENT PLACEMENT AT ST. JOSEPH’S
Although millions of Americans receive a heart stent each year, the procedure is not without risks and could have a long-term effect on the health and life of recipients.
An unnecessary stent procedure at St. Joseph hospital not only results in medical bills and a violation of the patient trust, it could also result in severe physical and psychological injuries, including potentially life-threatening complications of a stent placement.
Studies suggest that the risk of major stent complications could be as high as 5.7%, with a death rate of 2.3%. During the actual procedure, there is a risk of heart attack, stroke or coronary artery damage, which may result in the need for emergency bypass surgery.
Once the stent is implanted, patients face long-term risks associated with a stent, including the risk of a blood clot forming within the stent, which may result in a heart attack or other life-threatening injury at a later date.
To reduce the risk of a blood clot from a stent procedure, individuals are often prescribed a blood thinner like Plavix (clopidogrel). This medication is expensive and carries many additional risks associated with side effects of Plavix. In many cases it is necessary for stent patients to use Plavix for more than a year, and potentially indefinitely.
Individuals who were told that they had significant blockages, also likely suffered psychological damages as a result of the incorrect belief that they had severe heart disease.
LAWYERS FOR ST. JOSEPH HOSPITAL STENT PATIENTS
The attorneys at Saiontz & Kirk, P.A. previously represented individuals who received a letter about a stent implant by Dr. Mark Midei at St. Joseph Medical Center. New cases are no longer being accepted. This page is maintained for informational purposes only.