Opinion ID: 2560407
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Testimony of the Medical Experts

Text: Predictably, the testimony of the medical experts painted conflicting portraits. Doctor Russo, a neurosurgeon who treated Mr. Bonn from October 29, 2003, to August 11, 2004, [3] testified that Mr. Bonn came to him after an injury of the left forearm, left hand, [and] upper-left shoulder sustained as a result of his involvement in a motor vehicle accident on 10/22/03. Mr. Bonn reported to Dr. Russo that pain resulting from this injury was radiating into his spine, neck, head, and both shoulders. Doctor Russo treated plaintiff by prescribing medications, arranging a course of physical therapy, anti-inflammatory injections, ordering two diagnostic MRIs [4] that revealed two disc abnormalities, and referrals for cervical traction and chiropractic care. Doctor Russo testified that Mr. Bonn was discharged from his care on August 11, 2004. That discharge, Dr. Russo testified, was based upon his opinion that Mr. Bonn, despite continuing pain and limitation had reached his maximum medical improvement. [5] Doctor Russo further testified to his opinion, based on a reasonable degree of medical certainty, that there was a direct causal relationship between the October 2003 motor vehicle accident and the patient's clinical condition. The plaintiff next presented the video deposition of Dr. J. Winslow Alford, a board certified orthopedic surgeon subspecializing in shoulder and knee injuries. [6] Doctor Alford testified that he first saw Mr. Bonn on June 26, 2007, for treatment. At that time, Mr. Bonn told the physician that he had been experiencing shoulder and neck pain dating to 2003. Doctor Alford also reviewed two MRIs dating to 2004, when Mr. Bonn still was being treated by Dr. Russo. These were [a]n MRI of the cervical spine and an MRI of the left shoulder without contrast. When he reviewed the results of the MRIs, Dr. Alford detected evidence of a symptomatic superior labral tear. He testified that such an injury to the shoulder does not always produce constant pain, but can cause pain when the injured person is in provocative positions. He testified that because of the pain [Mr. Bonn] had held himself in a fairly protected position, and so he had losthe had lost motion. Therefore, with the goal of increasing range of motion and augmenting rotor cuff strength relative to Mr. Bonn's left shoulder, Dr. Alford prescribed physical therapy. Also, because he found Mr. Bonn to be very symptomatic and having very poor function of the left shoulder, he placed a restriction upon Mr. Bonn to keep him out of work. Subsequently, because Mr. Bonn's symptoms remained fairly consistent despite conservative treatment, Dr. Alford concluded that arthroscopic surgery was necessary. That surgery was performed on Mr. Bonn's left shoulder in September of 2007. At deposition, the doctor was asked: Based on your education, your training, and the treatment that you provided to Mr. Bonn, all the medical records that you reviewed, including the results of the MRI that you referenced and the arthroscopic surgery, do you have an opinion to a reasonable degree of medical certainty as to whether or not the superior labral tear was caused by the motor vehicle accident of October 22, 2003, in his left shoulder? To this question, Dr. Alford replied, Yes.    It's my opinion that that was caused by the motor vehicle accident in 2003. Not surprisingly, defendant presented conflicting expert testimony in the person of Dr. A. Louis Mariorenzi, an orthopedic surgeon, who testified that he did not physically examine Mr. Bonn and that his opinions were based upon his review of medical records, court documents, and exhibits. With respect to the injuries Mr. Bonn suffered as a result of the 2003 collision, Dr. Mariorenzi testified, [i]t was my opinion based upon the medical records that I reviewed that as a result of the motor vehicle accident he suffered a strain to the neck, the lower back and a strain to the left shoulder. Asked for his opinion about the duration of Mr. Bonn's injuries resulting from the motor vehicle accident of October 2003, Dr. Mariorenzi answered, [i]t was also my opinion that from these injuries he had made a full recovery, based on the records reviewed, probably by August of 2004. Critically, Dr. Mariorenzi opined, the surgery that was performed on his shoulder was not a result or consequence of the injury he suffered on October 22, 2003. [7]