The jury for a malpractice suit delivered a $1.5 million fine to a Virginia radiology firm for misinterpreting the CT scan of a patient who initially presented to the emergency department with abdominal pain, according to an article by the Roanoke Times.
In August 2016, LewisGale Medical Center in Salem admitted Alexander Nelson to the emergency department, where clinicians referred him for a CT exam, the Times reported. The supervisor on hand, a representative of Radiology Assoc. of Roanoke, completed the patient's report without any reference to appendicitis or possible appendicitis.
Nelson returned to the hospital two days later in worse condition, and a follow-up CT exam revealed that he had a ruptured appendix, according to the claim. He then had a stroke during surgery for the rupture.
A series of other complications -- including sepsis, respiratory failure, and blood clotting -- arose as a consequence of the original misdiagnosis of mesenteritis, said Nelson's lawyer, Anthony Russell. Over the course of three extended hospital stays and follow-up therapy, Nelson accumulated more than $365,000 in medical expenses.
The jury reached its verdict after three hours of deliberation on February 16, from which point the defense has 30 days to file post-trial motions, according to the Times.
![Axial images from unenhanced calcium score cardiac CT (left) and curved planar reformation images from CT angiography (right) show that higher long-term exposure to air pollution is associated with greater coronary artery calcium and more obstructive coronary artery disease (CAD). Top row: Images in a 68-year-old male patient with higher 10-year mean ambient air pollution exposure (7.9 μg/m3 for particulate matter measuring ≤2.5 μm in diameter [PM2.5] and 17.4 parts per billion [ppb] for NO2) with extensive CAD (coronary artery calcium score [CACS] >1,000 and obstructive CAD [≥70% diameter stenosis]). Bottom row: Images in a 57-year-old female patient with lower 10-year mean ambient air pollution exposure (6.3 μg/m3 for PM2.5 and 4.6 ppb for NO2) with no CAD (CACS = 0 and no obstructive stenosis).](https://img.auntminnie.com/mindful/smg/workspaces/default/uploads/2026/06/hanneman.r6SMLzkezo.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&dpr=2&fit=crop&h=167&q=70&w=250)
