Woman claims gallbladder surgery resulted in liver damage

An Alton surgeon is being sued by a woman who claims her liver was damaged during a gall bladder operation in 2006.

Sheila Ann Calopietro claims Maudie Miller, M.D, performed an endoscopic procedure to remove her gall bladder on March 6, 2006, but allegedly failed to order pre-operative tests which would have indicated her gallbladder had fused to her liver.

According to the complaint filed Oct. 3 in Madison County Circuit Court, Miller failed to see, and then cut, a vein on the right side of Calopietro's liver while attempting to remove her gallbladder.

Calopietro also claims Miller allegedly failed to adequately repair the cut, which caused restricted blood flow to the liver.

She claims that as a result, "60% of Plaintiff's liver was caused to die from the lack of adequate blood flow to the right side of the liver causing the surgical removal of that portion of the liver."

Calopietro also claims that she did not know that her "current condition of ill-being" was caused by the alleged negligence of Miller "until advised by her reviewing surgeon on November 14, 2007," the complaint states.

She is represented by Theodore R. Diaz of the Diaz Law Firm in Alton. She is seeking in excess of $50,000 in damages.