Seven figure recovery for brain injury due to air embolus

Most patients in a hospital setting have a variety of IV lines or catheters which are placed into
their body for many purposes. When changing or manipulating those lines, it is important that
the nursing staff makes sure that air does not enter the line, particularly if it is inserted directly
into an artery since arteries provide a direct pathway to the brain.

In this particular case, our client, a 63-year-old husband and father, was in a Pittsburgh area
hospital when a nurse came in to do a routine blood draw from a central venous line that had
been placed several days earlier. Unfortunately, due to some mistake by the nurse, air entered
the line and then it eventually migrated to the brain causing a fatal stroke. Entry of air into an IV
or other line is considered a catastrophic event that should never occur. Our expert said that the
nurse did something wrong such as she did not properly “prime” the line or allowed outside air
to enter it when she was disconnecting part of the line. Therefore, in this case the hospital did
not debate that they were at fault for the patient’s death and instead most of the debate was about
the value of the claim. In any case involving the death of a husband and father, even one who is
retired, as our client was, there is substantial damage for the loss of companionship and
relationship that the wife and children suffer. We were able to achieve a recovery well over
seven figures on behalf of the family.

This case provides a tragic lesson that even the most routine of medical procedures such as a
blood draw can lead to dangerous complications such an air embolus if hospital staff are not
vigilant in performing day-to-day tasks.