Ind. Federal Judge Refuses to Exclude Psychiatrist’s Expert Report in IVC Filter Case

INDIANAPOLIS — An Indiana federal judge has refused to exclude the expert report of a psychiatrist who concluded that a bellwether plaintiff’s injuries were not caused by a Cook Medical IVC filter, but rather are the result of preexisting psychiatric disorders.

In a Nov. 19 order, Judge Richard L. Young of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana ruled that the expert’s differential diagnosis properly considered all of the possible causes of the plaintiff’s injuries and may be presented to a jury.

Tonya Brand was scheduled to undergo spinal fusion surgery on March 19, 2009. Because she …