Woman Awarded $200,000 in Medical Malpractice Lawsuit

By Daniel Hawn

Published on October 13, 2005

Diane Carabeo filed the lawsuit against Dr. Armando DeGuzman on Sept. 30, 2002. In it, she claimed that she saw DeGuzman July 9, 2001 for pain she was experiencing in her pelvis. The lawsuit states that DeGuzman decided that Carabeo needed a hysterectomy and performed the procedure October 1.

Following the surgery, DeGuzman performed a second procedure because Carabeo noticed blood in her urine. Carabeo's right ureter had become bent and a small cut on it leaked urine. DeGuzman sutured the cut.

Carabeo returned to the hospital's emergency room two times on October 7, suffering from pain. DeGuzman sent Carabeo to another hospital, where a urologist diagnosed her as having a uteral obstruction and prescribed a stent placement.

The procedure could not be performed, however, because of swelling though in Carabeo's ureter. She was taken instead to another facility and underwent a temporary procedure.

Carabeo required two additional surgeries over the next few months.

Carabeo's lawsuit alleged that DeGuzman should have performed a stent placement after he realized the problems with Carabeo's ureter. It also claimed that he should have immediately referred her to a specialist.

The jury deliberated for approximately one day before making their decision in favor of Carabeo.

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