Refractive Surgery News

Dr. Kerry Assil Sued by California Attorney General for Violations of Telephone Consumers Protection Act

Belinda Bickelman filed a lawsuit against Dr. Kerry Assil for sending mass unsolicited advertisements via fax broadcast.  The Attorney General of California eventually weighed into the case to sue Dr. Kerry Assil and many other defendants for violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act....
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Dr. Stephen Brint Sued by Rand Hoch for Medical Malpractice

Press Release from Searcy Denney Scarola Barnhart & Shipley, PA While LASIK eye surgery is often an effective solution to the inconvenience of glasses, the procedure, which involves laser reshaping of the cornea, can lead to tragic results if pre-surgery screening or the procedure itself...
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Dr. Andrew Caster Sued by Allison Marich for Medical Malpractice

Case Number: SC088369 ALLISON MARICH VS. ANDREW I. CASTER,M.D. ET. AL. Filing Date: 01/24/2006 Case Type: Med Malpractice (Drs & Surgeons) (General Jurisdiction) Status: Pending Future Hearings 01/24/2007 at 08:30 am in department WEM at 1725 Main Street, Santa Monica, CA 90401 Motion - Summary...
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Dr. Anthony Kameen Employs Prejudicial Racial Tactics to Escape Justice

Batson challenge delays LASIK trial A lawyer's medical malpractice suit against a doctor who performs LASIK vision correction surgery was postponed yesterday after the plaintiff successfully argued that the defense improperly struck black jurors from the panel. Represented by his law partner Jay D. Miller,...
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Dr. Anthony Kameen Sued by George Psoras for Medical Malpractice

On May 22, 1998 Anthony Kameen, M.D. performed Laser Refractive Surgery, LASIK, upon the Plaintiff, resulting in retinal tears and detachment in Plaintiff's left eye resulting in total blindness.
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Mark Schiffer Wins a Record 7 Million Judgement Against Dr. Mark Speaker

Former Banker Awarded $7M in Damages From LASIK Eye Surgery Anthony Lin New York Law Journal A Manhattan jury has awarded a former investment banker $7.25 million in damages for vision impairment he claimed resulted from LASIK eye surgery. The award -- $4.5 million in...
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VISX, Laser Vision Centers, and Dr. Tom Morrison Sued by Cheryl Atchison for Medical Malpractice and Use of a Defective Device

The LASIK surgery was first performed on plaintiff’s right eye. While approximately midway through performing the LASIK surgery procedure on the left eye, defendant Morrison and Tri-Lakes discontinued the procedure. The laser stopped prematurely and/or the fluence became out of range causing an asymmetric treatment, furrow or trough in the stroma and/or more ablation to be received in a portion of the left eye of plaintiff when the surgery was being performed, causing damage to her eye.
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Dr. Michael Campion Sued by Dr. Gary Smethers for Medical Malpractice

Expert witness' testimony as to his personal practices is admissible Smethers v. Campion, No. 04-0117 (Ariz. Ct. App. Mar. 22, 2005) - DEx 95391 The Arizona Court of Appeals reversed a trial court's decision to exclude a doctor's testimony of his personal practices and held...
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Florida Judge's Vision Remains Damaged Following Twenty Surgeries

Judge's eyesight remains imperfect Twenty surgeries and one settled lawsuit later, Lynn Tepper sees three moons instead of five at night. But it's still a strain to see, she says. By JAMAL THALJI, Times Staff Writer DADE CITY - Every time Circuit Judge Lynn Tepper...
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Florida Judge Settles Malpractice Lawsuit Against Serial Surgeon

PAIN, BLURRED VISION BLAMED ON SURGERY DADE CITY — Pasco Circuit Judge Lynn Tepper has reached a settlement with the Largo eye surgeon she sued for malpractice in 2003. Terms of the settlement were not disclosed. Tepper, 52, sued John Michaelos saying that Michaelos botched...
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Dr. Jack Dodick Escapes Liability for Damaging Lisa Amendolia's Vision

New York Law Journal Amendolia v. Dodick, No. 18268/01 Court: Kings Supreme Plaintiff Attorney: Jonathon D. Warner of Warner & Scheuerman, New York. Defense Attorney: John L.A. Lyddane of Martin Clearwater & Bell, New York. A New York ophthalmologist was found not liable for vision...
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Dr. Joseph Dello Russo's Insurer Ordered to Pay $15.3 Million

An insurance company for a prominent Bergen County, New Jersey eye surgeon must pay $15.3 million to cover malpractice claims made by 16 former patients, a Superior Court judge has ruled. Princeton Insurance Co. claimed an arbitrator's ruling that settled the dispute between the plaintiffs...
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Trial Set for TV's "Extreme Makeover" LASIK Surgeon, Dr. Robert Maloney

Robert Maloney, MD, well known for his role on ABC's successful "Extreme Makeover," will be the defendant in a jury trial set for April 6, 2005 in Los Angeles Superior Court, Santa Monica, CA.  In a civil suit, Maloney has been charged by one of...
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Web Postings: Docs Would Rather Fight than Settle

Illinois Leader SPRINGFIELD - Every year for several years, legislation to identify individual physicians involved in medical malpractice lawsuits has been introduced in the Illinois General Assembly without advancing to a vote. The chief sponsor of the Patient Right-to-Know Act, Rep. Mary Flowers (D-Chicago), has...
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Judge Issues Order to Protect Expert Witness from TLC Intimidation

Decision of Interest; New York Supreme Court, New York County; Justice Schlesinger Schiffer v. Speaker - On September 29, 2000 Mark Schiffer met for the first time with an optometrist, Dr. Regina Zyszkowski, to determine whether he was a suitable candidate for LASIK surgery....
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Dr. Nicholas Caro Sued for Medical Malpractice by "N.K."

Plaintiff claimed that after undergoing LASIK surgery on her right eye on April 30, 1999, she experienced difficulties with a serious candida fungal infection which she followed-up with him on several occasions, which consisted of cap cleanings, prescription of several antibiotics and a steroid, until the following June 11th, her last visit. She subsequently had to undergo a corneal transplant.
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Lasik Vision Institute Sued for HIV Disability Claim

Public awareness of HIV case prompts 2nd alleged victim to step forward Disability Compliance Bulletin November 25, 2004 Vol. 29, No. 3 Sometimes a dormant settlement negotiation can be kick-started by using innovative approaches to keep word of your efforts alive among members of the...
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Notorious Doctor Escapes Liability in Malpractice Lawsuit

Doctor Malpractice: Lack of Consent Defense Verdict: Visual Impairment A 27-year-old female suffered visual impairment while in the care of the male defendant ophthalmologist where she presented for Lasik eye surgery. The plaintiff contended that the defendant failed to obtain informed consent for the surgery...
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TLC Draws Negative Publicity After Malpractice Misstep

When most medical malpractice lawsuits are settled, a gag clause is signed as part of the settlement contract.  In the case of Richard "Zig" Zickefoose vs. TLC, TLC's attorneys failed to put a gag clause in the contract.  After TLC executives discovered that the settlement...
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Pilot's $4 million Award Over LASIK Surgery is Reinstated

By Anne Denogean Tucson Citizen A man whose career as a commercial pilot was ended by a LASIK eye operation should get a $4 million judgment, a judge ruled. The Superior Court judge reinstated a $4 million judgment against University Physicians Healthcare - formerly University...
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Indiana Supreme Court Rules Against Dr. Robert Wiley

High Court Hears Nearly Blind Man's Case By Niki Kelly The Fort Wayne Journal Gazette INDIANAPOLIS - The Indiana Supreme Court heard arguments Thursday about whether the medical malpractice suit of a northeast Indiana man left nearly blind in one eye can move forward. In...
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Dr. Nicholas Caro Sued for Medical Malpractice by "S.W."

These husband and wife plaintiffs are claiming that during one of two, or possibly both bilateral LASIK surgeries performed by Dr. Nicholas Caro on September 22, and October 5, 1999, metallic particles were left embedded in both of Mrs. W's corneas. Although her treatment subsequent to the discovery of the alleged particles was not yet disclosed in this file at the time it was copied, it is possible that she had to undergo corneal transplantation.
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Appeals Court Overturns Judge's Order for New Trial in Pilot's Case

The Arizona Court of Appeals has overturned a judge's order for a new trial in the case of a former airline pilot who sued for damage done by LASIK eye surgery. The decision reinstates the $4 million verdict, the largest award ever given in a...
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N.J. Supreme Court Says Doctors, Lawyers Can't Be Sued for Consumer Fraud

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) - Doctors, lawyers and other professionals cannot be sued for false advertising under New Jersey's consumer fraud law because it wasn't written to cover them, the state Supreme Court ruled. The decision issued Monday overturns a ruling made in March 2003...
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Senate President's Wife Sues Eye Doctor While He Pushes Award Caps

(FRANKFORT, Ky., January 27th, 2004, 10:30 a.m.) -- The wife of Senate President David Williams is suing an eye doctor, while her husband pushes for caps on medical malpractice awards. Robyn Williams claims that eye surgery performed by an ophthalmologist, Dr. Thomas Abell, damaged...
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Clinic Sued in Failure to Pay

By Catherine Holahan and Kibret Markos BERGENFIELD - Dr. Joseph Dello Russo, a high-profile eye surgeon, has made millions performing laser eye surgery at his Bergenfield and Manhattan offices. So it was an unusual sight when officers from the Bergen County Sheriff's Department came...
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Dr. Glenn Kawesch Sued by Aris Vision Institute for Breach of Contract

Visit USAEYES.us for details on Aris Vision Institute vs. Dr. Glenn Kawesch....
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Defense Lawyer Asks for New Trial in $4 Million LASIK Verdict

Expert witness Jeffery J. Machat, MD, of Toronto mistakenly presented erroneous information during a May trial that led to a $4 million jury verdict against United Physicians Inc. (UPI) of Tucson, Ariz., Machat testified at an August evidentiary hearing. Machat was a witness for former...
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Dr. Nicholas Caro Sued for Medical Malpractice by "R.C"

Plaintiff alleged that during her treatment consisting of multiple refractive surgeries to both eyes at St. George Corrective Vision Center between August of 1993 and September of 1997, Dr. Nicholas Caro and/or other personnel affiliated with him, among other things, performed two surgeries that have a well known poor success rate (hexagonal keratotomy and/or automated lamellar keratoplasty), failed to properly inform her about the experimental nature of each surgery performed which ultimately necessitated corneal transplantation, and also didn't inform her that an excimer laser, apparently manufactured by PDI Laser, was not approved by the FDA and that the FDA had denied Dr. Caro's application to use it, and went ahead and used it on her anyway.
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Serial Surgeon Sued for Performing 20 Unnecessary Surgeries

Judge Tepper Sues Eye Doctor St. Petersburg Times Pasco-Pinellas Circuit Judge Lynn Tepper has filed a lawsuit against a doctor and his office over an eye operation that she says led to more than 20 unnecessary surgeries and damaged vision in her right eye. Tepper,...
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Dr. Nicholas Caro Sued for Medical Malpractice by "E.L.I."

Plaintiff alleged that on March 27, 1997, she underwent bilateral LASIK eye surgery without being given adequate informed consent regarding possible problems with her connective tissue disorder, rheumatoid arthritis and dry eyes. As a result she allegedly had severe loss of vision in both eyes from "corneal melting" and there was a period of about two and one-half months when she was legally blind.
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Laser Eye Surgery Lawsuits Double as Patients' High Expectations are Dashed

The growth of laser eye surgery could lead to a tidal wave of litigation against eye specialists, doctors' groups admitted yesterday after revealing that lawsuits over the technique have more than doubled in the past six years. While some claims allege faulty surgery, the Medical...
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Dr. Glenn Kawesch Sued by Margaret Cheleman for Medical Malpractice

Visit USAEYES.us for details on Margaret Cheleman vs. Dr. Glenn Kawesch....
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Keith Wills v. Nevyas Eye Associates - Report on Standard of Care Deviation

Dr. Nevyas breached the applicable standard of care by operating on this highly myopic patient with an excimer laser utilizing a treatment zone that was substantially smaller than the pupil size in dim light. Specifically, Mr. Wills' pupils measured 6.25 mm in dim light, while the laser treatment zone was only 5 mm in diameter. With this combination of high myopia and a relatively large pupil, the use of a comparatively small diameter laser treatment zone was highly predictable to cause Mr. Wills to develop the residual visual problems from which he continues to suffer. Moreover, this specific situation (i.e. high myopia and large pupil diameter relative to laser treatment zone) was well known, even in 1997, to result in the likely outcome of permanent problems of glare, halo, starburst, and ghost imaging phenomena.
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Dr. Glenn Kawesch Sued by Virginia King for Wrongful Termination

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Dr. Glenn Kawesch Sued by Michael Pines for Medical Malpractice

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Dominic Morgan v. Nevyas Eye Associates - Report on Standard of Care Deviation (2)

In review of Dr. Salz' extensive examination and conclusions, I am of the opinion in complete agreement with Dr. Salz to the best degree of medical probability that the care rendered by Dr. Anita Nevyas-Wallace on behalf of Dominic Morgan fell below standard for LASIK surgery at the time. Indeed, I completely agree with Dr. Salz that Dr. Nevyas-Wallace failed to appropriately screen Mr. Morgan and exclude him as a viable candidate for LASIK surgery based on his extensive prior ophthalmologic history which would have predicted a less than optimal result, as he has ultimately experienced with the surgery performed by Dr. Anita Nevyas-Wallace.
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Dr. Barrie Soloway Sued by Eric Schuler-Dalverny for for Medical Malpractice

Each of the defendants, their agents, servants, partners and/or employees, were negligent and careless in the services rendered for and on behalf of the plaintiff; in negligently and carelessly failing and neglecting to heed the plaintiff's condition; in negligently performing refractive eye surgery; in negligently and carelessly taking a history; in negligently and carelessly failing to examine and evaluate the eyes of the plaintiff; in negligently and carelessly discharging the plaintiff without adequate follow-up procedures; in failing to take adequate tests; in failing to promptly and properly perform refractive eye surgery; in failing to promptly and properly perform tests and procedures; in failing to heed the complaints of the plaintiff; in ignoring the complaints of the plaintiff; in negligently and carelessly departing from accepted practices and services rendered; in performing contraindicated procedures on the plaintiff; in failing to perform indicated procedures; in failing to follow good practice; and otherwise being negligent.
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Dominic Morgan v. Nevyas Eye Associates - Report on Standard of Care Deviation (1)

Mr. Morgan states and it is confirmed on his patient history dated 3/10/98 that he came to the Nevyas Eye Associates because he heard a radio commercial on station KYW. I have reviewed the script of radio advertisements, the Nevyas web pages, and a promotional Videotape of a program that was shown on cable television and may have been distributed to patients. I have been told that all of these materials were used during the FDA investigation of the Nevyas Laser. None of these materials included the FDA required warning that the device is limited to investigational use only. The ads also represent that the procedure is safe, and in fact the TV ad shows a simulated blurred 20/200 vision quickly dissolving into a sharp 20/20 vision. There are numerous other representations that the procedure is safe and effective. If patients were responding to these advertisements and then were entered into the FDA study, that would represent a serious deviation from the standard of care and one that I am sure the FDA would be interested in these practices.
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Dr. Andrew Caster Sued by Chris Carlisle for Medical Malpractice

Case Number: SC070593 CHRIS CARLISLE VS. ANDREW CASTER,M.D. ET. AL. Filing Date: 01/31/2002 Case Type: Med Malpractice (Drs & Surgeons) (General Jurisdiction) Parties BRUCE G CARPENTER - Mediator CARLISLE CHRIS - Plaintiff CASTER EYE CENTER MEDICAL GROUP - Defendant CASTER M.D. ANDREW - Defendant LEWIS...
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Dr. Glenn Kawesch Sued by George Biagi for Medical Malpractice and Fraud

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Dr. Glenn Kawesch Sued by Frank Soya for Medical Malpractice

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Defense Attorney Recommends Surgeons Avoid Engineers, Lawyers, Pilots and Physicians

LASIK Lawsuits - Patients and their lawyers take aim. The number of cases is increasing.  How to protect and, if necessary, defend yourself By C. Gregory Tiemeier, J.D., Denver, Colo. Excerpt:   Patient personalities.  Watch out for perfectionists.  A disproportionately high number of them are engineers,...
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Cheryl Fiorelli v. Nevyas Eye Associates - Report on Standard of Care Deviation

It is my opinion, to the best degree of medical probability, that Dr. Anita Nevyas-Wallace deviated from acceptable standards of care in her surgical judgement in selecting Ms. Cheryl Fiorelli as a candidate for LASIK surgery given her extremely high myopia and astigmatism. The failure to obtain corneal pachymetry to accurately assess comeal thickness preoperatively even in 1997 was substandard. The creation of the LASIK flap was complicated by microkeratome failure and stoppage both on the forward and reverse passes as documented in the medical record. Actually, a nurse was controlling the foot pedals of the microkeratome and not the operative surgeon. Moreover, an unapproved laser ("black box laser") was used to perform the Excimer Laser ablation.
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Dr. Thomas Tooma Sued by Jerry Lehrer for Professional Negligence and Fraud

Read the lawsuit titled Dr. Thomas Tooma Sued by Jerry Lehrer for Professional Negligence and Fraud at USAEyes.us....
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Dr. Robert Maloney Sued by Yvette Boleslav for Medical Malpractice, Assault and Battery

That because of intentional misrepresentations made to plaintiff by defendants, and each of them, to the effect that eye "floaters" could not be produced or increased as the result of the defendants’ recommended surgical procedure, plaintiff submitted to the so-called "advanced" type of surgery, which, in fact, did cause and increase floaters in both of plaintiff’s eyes, so as to seriously interfere with her vision, and the details of which has been described in paragraphs 4, 5, and 6, above; that had the defendants advised plaintiff that the contemplated surgery was known to have caused, and/or increased eye "floaters" in other patients, plaintiff would never have submitted to surgery.
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Dr. Nicholas Caro Sued for Medical Malpractice by "G.D." and "M.H."

Plaintiff alleged that two weeks after Dr. Nicholas Caro performed LASIK surgery on both of his eyes on January 2, 1998, his left eye began to turn red, vision became decreased, the pupil turned white, and due to a corneal infection, developed a corneal ulcer.
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Dr. Andrew Caster Sued by Dr. David Hart for Medical Malpractice

Case Number: SC055681 DAVID N. HART M.D. VS. ANDREW I. CASTER, M.D. ET. AL. Filing Date: 01/19/1999 Case Type: Med Malpractice (Drs & Surgeons) (General Jurisdiction) Parties BONNE BRIDGES MUELLER O'KEEFE & NICHOL - Attorney for Defendant CASTER ANDREW I. M.D. - Defendant CASTER EYE...
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Dr. Stephen Slade Sued for Medical Malpractice by Sheryl Sullivan

Dr. Stephen Slade performed LASIK on patient "A", using the measurements for patient "B". Dr. Slade then took patient "A" down to Mexico for experimental surgery that failed to work as intended.
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Dr. Nicholas Caro Sued for Medical Malpractice by "E.G."

Plaintiff claimed that during the second of two lamellar keratectomy (LK) surgeries on his left eye on August 26, 1994, Dr. Nicholas Caro cut too deeply into it causing severe damage to the cornea and iris. He also claimed that Eye Technology manufactured a defective machine that was used during the procedure.
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Dr. Nicholas Caro Sued for Medical Malpractice by "G.C."

Plaintiff alleged that on February 23, 1994, Dr. Nicholas Caro, among other things, improperly performed a lamellar keratoplasty on him without giving proper informed consent by warning him of the risks involved which include blindness and also failed to inform him of alternatives. He is now blind in his left eye.
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