BEAUMONT - A recent medical malpractice trial concluded with a Jefferson County jury finding no negligence on the part of the defendant or the plaintiff.
The lawsuit was brought by Riley Lemons and named Dr. Kenneth Jones as a defendant.
According to the plaintiff’s first amended petition, on June 30, 2018, Lemons went to the emergency room at Christus Hospital - St. Elizabeth, with complaints of dizziness, lightheadedness and shortness of breath. Lemons underwent a urinalysis to determine if he was suffering from a urinary tract infection (UTI).
Despite not having any UTI symptoms and that the urine nitrates were negative in Lemons’ urinalysis, Dr. Jones prescribed an antibiotic called Bactrim to treat his incorrectly diagnosed UTI, the suit states. Dr. Jones also prescribed Prednisone, a steroid. At the time of his ER visit, Lemons was already taking a medication for atrial fibrillation known as Warfarin – an anticoagulant.
“When this case is tried, the evidence will show that Dr. Jones knew, or by the exercise of ordinary care, should have known that prescribing Bactrim in a patient such as Mr. Lemons is contraindicated since Bactrim has an effect of enhancing the anticoagulation effect of Warfarin, further increasing Mr. Lemons’ risk of internal bleeding,” the suit states.
The suit asserts Dr. Jones discharged Lemons without adjusting his Warfarin dose to account for the drug-drug interaction. He returned to the ER on July 16, 2018, and was diagnosed as suffering from gross hematuria and Warfarin-induced coagulopathy. He required insertion of a three way Foley catheter, which took multiple attempts to insert and caused urethral trauma. Lemons underwent surgery and the surgeon determined that he suffered an area of trauma.
“Following discharge from this hospitalization, Mr. Lemons continued to have blood in his urine and continued to have problems urinating even after his discharge from the hospital,” the suit states.
The case went to trial last month. The jury found no negligence on the part of Dr. Jones or Lemons, according to the charge of the jury, filed on March 29, court records show.
Judge Mitch Templeton, 172nd District Court, presided over the trial.
Jefferson County District Court case No. E-205939.