Woman's Malpractice Case Reinstated by Nevada Supreme Court

By Daniel Hawn

Published on August 17, 2005

The court's decision will allow Annette Szydel to bring her medical malpractice lawsuit against Dr. Barry Markman.

In June 2001, Markman performed a breast-lift operation on Szydel. After completing the procedure for her right breast, Markman's staff performed a count of the surgical equipment.

When the nurses informed Markman that all of the instruments were present, Markman then completed the procedure for Szydel's left breast.

After Szydel left the operating room it was discovered that a needle was missing. Tests revealed that the needle had been left in Szydel's right breast, showing that the staff's initial count was inaccurate. The needle was subsequently removed.

Szydel's original attempt to bring a malpractice suit against Markman was denied by a district court because Szydel did not provide a supporting affidavit from a medical expert, in accordance with one portion of Nevada law. A separate section of Nevada law states that such an affidavit is not necessary in cases where an object is left in a patient.

In the decision issued Thursday, the court clarified the laws and ruled that when a foreign object is left inside a patient, a medical expert's testimony is not needed to bring a case to trial.

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