May reopen car wreck claim

[catwoman]

Because our family doctor, cardiologist and one surgeon tend to believe that John's mitral valve problem is due to a head-on car accident in early December 2005, I chatted yesterday with an employee in our insurance agent's office.

I described what is going on -- that the mitral valve prolapse was DXed in late August or early September 2006, our PCP immediately thought it was due to impact trauma from the sternum fractured in the crash, and that a TEE found that the chordae were ruptured.
We met with one surgeon this week, and he was very interested in information about the accident, where John's chest was hit by the deployed airbag, etc.

The agent's employee said for us to file to reopen the claim to get insurance to pay more under the Personal Injury Protection portion of the policy.

We'll have to provide letters from doctors saying the valve damage is consistent with injuries from a car accident.
There are a number of medical journal articles about mitral valve chordae ruptured by blunt chest trauma.

It's worth a shot.

 

[geebee]

Good luck and I hope you are successful. These are the types of things that insurance was developed to help.

 

[Mary]

Marsha,
Didn't one of our members have the same thing happen to them? She had just been treated at Mayo when I joined, and I later learned that her problems stemmed from a injury suffered in a car accident. Good luck, that's a terrible way to develop a valve problem.

 

[catwoman]

Mary:

Page 84 of "Your Heart: An Owner's Manual":

In very severe trauma, such as from a car accident, the heart valves may be ruptured or otherwise injured.

Granted, John had no wounds. However, the sternum was fractured, which can be called traumatic. At least it was to him whenever he tried to bend over .