HOUSTON – More than a year after he sued over a medical device that pierced his vein, Houston firefighter Jeffrey Alan Pavlock has emerged the victor in his litigation.
A local state district jury on May 25 awarded Pavlock, who is his mid-thirties, more than $1.2 million, essentially disposing his January 2017 lawsuit against Dr. Adrian Wong and Cook Inc.
Pavlock sued Wong and Cook on allegations a Cook Celect inferior vena cava filter which was surgically implanted in him three years ago pierced his vein and was lodged near his aorta.
The original petition stated that the device was supposed to “prevent blood clots (thrombi) from traveling from the lower portions of his body to the heart and lungs,” and that two attempts to remove it were unsuccessful.
“A leg or strut of the IVC filter has protruded through the wall of the plaintiff’s inferior vena cava and is adjacent to his aorta,” court documents filed on Jan. 19, 2017 stated.
According to Pavlock, the retained filter placed him “at risk for future migrations, perforations, and/or fractures.”
“He also faces numerous other health risks, including increased risk of clots and risk of death,” the suit said.
Wong formally countered Pavlock’s suit by stating the “occurrence in question was the result of a new, independent and intervening cause unforeseeable to the defendant.” The physician additionally deemed the aforementioned occurrence an accident.
Cook, in turn, argued that Pavlock provided informed consent prior to undergoing medical treatment.
The jury concluded that Cook was “negligent in warning (Dr.) Wong about the Cook Celect IVC Filter.”
The Harris County 80th District Court heard the case.
Harris County 80th District Court Case No. 2017-3885