A majority
of the Commission held claimant’s septic arthritis to the right ankle
and staph infection were causally connected to an incident at work in
which claimant twisted her ankle. The dissent argued claimant’s ankle
condition was not the result of her accident at work, noting an
infection specialist opined claimant’s ankle infection was due to tonsilitis and strep throat infections that had spread to her ankle.
Claimant, an
employee at defendant’s sandwich shop, testified she turned her ankle on
a wet floor at work. She worked the next day with a wrapped ankle and
attended her school dance. She stated she only danced twice and then had
to sit down. Three days after the work accident, she noticed the
right ankle was swollen and she went to the hospital emergency room. She
was diagnosed with a right ankle sprain. Two days later, claimant
returned to the emergency room claimant she slipped on her crutches at
home and further twisted the right ankle. Twenty days after the
accident, claimant was admitted into the hospital with an infected
ankle. She was diagnosed with septic arthritis to the right ankle with
ostemyelitis of the medical maleoius and her ankle with was debrided.
A subsequent culture revealed a staph infection. She underwent a second
surgery with a large skin graft.
The
arbitrator found a causal connection between claimant’s ankle condition
and her work accident and awarded permanent disability benefits for 40%
loss of use of the right foot, relying on the testimony of two of
claimant’s treating doctors. One doctor explained claimant had no ankle
problems before the work accident and had no ankle problems before the
work accident. Further, the doctor explained that sometimes after
people sprain their ankle, they develop bleeding inside the ankle
joints, which could become infected.
Upon review,
a majority of the Commission affirmed and adopted the decision of the
arbitrator.
The dissent
argued claimant’s ankle condition was not the result of her accident at
work, noting claimant attended a school dance the day after her
accident. The dissent further noted claimant was referred to an
infection specialist, who found claimant’s ankle infection was due to
tonsilitis and strep throat infections that had spread to her ankle,
where blood pools.
