Glorioso
U.S. District Court Judge Lance M. Africk is allowing the parents of a child born in 1984 with cerebral palsy to continue their case against the hospital that provided their son neonatal treatment.
The parents argue that the hospital was negligent by not informing them that their son received E-ferol, a vitamin E supplement which was later linked to health problems including cerebral palsy.
Gerald Michael Dileo, M.D., Linda Bartels Dileo, individually and on behalf of their son, John Lucas Dileo, III and John Lucas Dileo, III, individually, filed suit against Lakeside Hospital and Medical Center of Baton Rouge in federal court in New Orleans last year.
They claim their son was taken to the neonatal intensive care unit at Lakeside when he was born at 29 weeks gestation. During his four-month saty at Lakeside, "Luke" was given more than 1,250 units of E-ferol intravenously as a means to help prevent blindness.
The Dileos state that sometime around April 1984, two months after Luke began his regimen, the FDA discovered that the drug was causing severe health problems including to blindness, cerebral palsy and death.
The lawsuit states that Luke suffered form an intracranial hemorrhage, kidney failure, heart failure, coagulopathy, cerebral palsy and blindness.
Despite the amount of time that has passed since Luke received the vitamin, the family states they were not informed that the drug was known to cause the same serious complications that Luke suffered from until March 2008.
"Lakeside Hospital negligently and intentionally concealed the fact that Luke was administered E-ferol," the lawsuit states.
In February, the court granted Lakeside's motion to dismiss, finding that the claims under the Louisiana Unfair Trade Practices Act were preempted. But, in replies to the motion to dismiss, the Dileos argued that they also pleaded a state-law negligence claim that should not have been dismissed with the other claim.
Africk agreed with the family and is allowing the case to proceed on negligence claims.
The Dileos are seeking damages for physical pain and mental anguish, disability and handicap, lost earnings, permanent disabilities, lost enjoyment of life's pleasures, and medical expenses. The parents are asking the court to award additional damages for their medical expenses, loss of services, society and other losses of consortium.
New Orleans attorneys Vincent J. Glorioso, Jr., Maria B. Glorioso and Vincent J. Glorioso, III of The Glorioso Law Firm are representing the plaintiffs.
The lawfirm's website is "hugesettlements.com."
A jury trial is requested.
U.S. District Judge Lance M. Africk is assigned to the case.
Case No. 2:09cv02838