A man with severe diabetes and kidney failure was advised by his kidney doctors and vascular surgeons to undergo a procedure known as renal artery stenting. The procedure was intended to improve blood flow to the kidneys and potentially eliminate the need for dialysis.
However, hours after the procedure, blood clots formed, cutting off circulation to the feet. This led to amputations and, eventually, the patient’s death. The defense argued that the patient preferred trying this procedure over going on dialysis, that the amputations were caused by his diabetes rather than the procedure, and that his death was not statistically premature.
Discovery revealed that this procedure had been discredited in medical literature for patients like him years earlier. Additionally, before his death, the patient stated that he had not consented to have an inexperienced surgeon perform the procedure.