Failure to diagnose endocarditis

Failure to diagnose endocarditis. Our client’s wife, who had a history of mitral valve prolapse for which she had had an artificial heart valve implanted, began to experience fatigue, anemia, and weight loss. Her primary care physician prescribed iron supplements without performing any diagnostic testing. She did not improve and eventually died. Autopsy revealed endocarditis, an infection of the lining of the heart.

Our experts concluded that her artificial valve put her at risk for endocarditis, and that her symptoms required an echocardiogram, which would have revealed the endocarditis, that could have been successfully treated with antibiotics.