Malpractice Suit Filed Against Dentist, Center of Organ Harvest Investigation

By Daniel Hawn

Published on October 19, 2005

The malpractice lawsuit was filed by Ana L. Ortiz. In it, she claims that Dr. Michael Mastromarino injured one of her cranial nerves in the course of an operation on her jaw June 26, 2000. The lawsuit claims that, at the time of the surgery, Mastromarino was regularly using drugs.

As a result of her injury, Ortiz' face now sags on the left side and she has had to undergo additional surgery and grafting, the lawsuit states.

Earlier this month, when State Supreme Court Justice Eileen Bransten issued decisions on motions in the case, information about Mastromarino's history of drug use was revealed.

In April or May of 2000, Mastromarino was found in the bathroom of his office in New Jersey with a hypodermic needle and blood on the floor. He was subsequently sent to drug rehabilitation.

Approximately two months later, Mastromarino was arrested for drug possession. A urine test revealed that he had taken cocaine and others drugs. His arrest followed Ortiz' surgery by ten days.

Mastromarino, who operated a tissue removal business, is also being investigated by Brooklyn authorities for allegedly taking bone, tissue, and other parts from dead bodies and illegally selling them for transplants and other procedures.

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