Internal bleeding not stopped following hysterectomy, suit claims

A gynecologist with Southern Obstetrics and Gynecological Associates is being sued by a patient who claims the doctor "closed" before locating the source of bleeding after a hysterectomy.

Margie Kaiser and her husband Lamar Kaiser filed suit Dec. 13 in St. Clair County Circuit Court claiming A. Doll-Pollard, M.D. failed to properly inspect the operative site prior to closing when she knew or should have known that bleeding was continuing.

According to the complaint, Kaiser suffered hypotension following surgery on Dec. 13, 2005.

"...[T]he patient received initial treatment for that hypotension with an injection of ephedrine," the complaint states.

"That the patient then developed atrial fibrillation and her blood pressure dropped to 54/43 and while all of this was occurring, Dr. Doll-Pollard, believed, as indicated in her discharge summary, that the patient was doing well and transferred the patient to the floor..."

Kaiser claims her symptoms of internal bleeding went undiagnosed until a cardiologist at St. Joseph's Hospital recognized that she "was in serious difficulty" and transferred her to St. Elizabeth's Hospital in Belleville.

"That at St. Elizabeth's, the plaintiff received life saving care, from a number of doctors, including Dr. Smith, a surgeon, who performed an exploratory surgery," the complaint states.

"That Dr. Smith found approximately 1000-1500 ccs of red blood in the plaintiff's abdomen, continued his exploration, and found the cause of the bleeding which he describes as down in the pelvis anterior to the rectum and posterior to the bladder."

She claims the efforts of Smith and another doctor saved her life but they were unable to stop complications including infections, blood loss, loss of oxygen to the brain and other organs.

Kaiser claims Doll-Pollard allegedly failed to recognize that she suffered internal bleeding post-surgery and that she failed to recognize signs and symptoms of hypotension and atrial fibrillation which were caused by the internal blood loss.

Represented by John Womick of Herrin, Margie Kaiser is seeking in excess of $50,000 in damages from Doll-Pollard and Southern Obstetrics and Gynecological Associates. Lamar Kaiser is seeking in excess of $50,000 in damages claiming he suffered a decrease in society with his wife and has been forced to incur medical expenses.