Did a pre-op decision not to intubate an EGD patient lead to the patient's death? A $1.9 million jury judgment in favor of the patient's widow suggests so.

During an EGD without intubation to repair a Mallory-Weiss tear, Roy Ross, 63, began to retch and bleed into his lungs, according to court documents. Clearing the airway for successful intubation took 7 minutes, court records show. After the procedure, Mr. Ross's heart stopped and he developed brain damage due to lack of oxygen. He was taken off life support 3 days later.

Mr. Ross's widow, Carol, sued Longview (Texas) Regional Medical Center; Mark J. Williams, MD, the attending anesthesiologist; and Kenneth R. Crane, CRNA, a hospital employee. According to the summary, Mr. Crane testified that "he did not discuss the risks of the procedure beforehand with Williams, and that he was unaware Ross suffered a Mallory-Weiss tear, or that there was a risk for aspiration." The plaintiff's expert witness testified that intubation should have been the standard of practice for such a case, but that Dr. Williams's discretion on whether to direct intubation was also standard of care.

In November, the jury found the hospital and Dr. Williams each half-liable for Mr. Ross's death, awarding the plaintiffs $1.9 million, which will "shrink to less than $1 million after medical malpractice caps approved by voters [in Texas] in 2003 are applied," according to an article from the Longview News-Journal. Lawyers for plaintiffs and defendants did not respond to requests for comment.

Stephanie Wasek