Claims of Baer v. Eden Park Nursing Home
Full Opinion (html_with_citations)
Appeal from a decision of the Workersâ Compensation Board, filed June 5, 2006, as amended by decision filed April 26, 2007,which, among other things, ruled that claimant did not sustain causally related injuries and denied her claims for workersâ compensation benefits.
Claimant sustained a work-related injury to her back in June 2000 and was awarded benefits. Claimant thereafter filed four additional claims for workersâ compensation benefits including, insofar as is relevant to this appeal, claims for injuries allegedly sustained on March 25, 2004 and April 18, 2004. After receiving testimony from claimantâs neurosurgeon and chiropractor, as well as the neurosurgeon who performed the independent medical examination of claimant on behalf of the employer, a Workersâ Compensation Law Judge (hereinafter WCLJ) disallowed the 2004 claims, finding that there was insufficient medical evidence to support claimantâs contention that the cited claims were for ânewâ injuries. Accordingly, the WCLJ deemed any disability or treatment incurred by claimant subsequent to April 2004 to be attributable solely to the June 2000 injury. By decision filed June 5, 2006, a panel of the Workersâ Compensation Board affirmed, prompting claimant, the employer and the workersâ compensation carrier to seek full Board review. Thereafter, by amended decision filed April 26, 2007, the Board panel revised certain of its findings but otherwise affirmed the WCLJâs decision. This appeal by the employer and carrier ensued.
We affirm. âIt is well settled that it is for the Board to resolve conflicting expert medical testimony, especially where such
Here, although the neurosurgeon who performed the independent medical examination was of the view that the April 2004 injury was the precipitating cause of claimantâs severe symptoms and resulting need for surgery, such opinion was premised upon his conclusion that there was no prior evidence of sciatic or radicular symptoms. Both claimant and her chiropractor, however, testified that claimant did have radicular symptoms prior to the April 2004 incidentânamely, pain radiating down her left legâalbeit not to the degree that was experienced after that incident. Similarly, while claimantâs treating neurologist initially opined that claimantâs hospitalization and surgery in June 2004 was the product of a âcumulative situation,â with the April 2004 incident âprobablyâ representing âthe most direct . . . etiologyâ for claimantâs predicament, when asked whether the April 2004 incident constituted a new injury or an exacerbation of claimantâs prior condition, he replied that any answer to that question would involve speculation. When asked the same question regarding the March 2004 incident, claimantâs neurologist replied, âI have no way to distinguish the two.â The testimony offered by claimantâs chiropractor as to whether claimant sustained a work-related injury to her back in March 2004 or April 2004 was equally inconclusive. The chiropractor noted that similar symptoms were displayed by claimant throughout her treatment, and he concluded that the 2004 events could have been considered either aggravations of claimantâs prior condition or new incidents. In light of such testimony, the Boardâs finding that the 2004 incidents did not constitute new injuries is supported by substantial evidence.
Peters, Carpinello, Kane and Stein, JJ., concur. Ordered that the decision is affirmed, without costs.