Court of Appeals Affirms Decision Holding that Deep Vein Thrombosis is an Industrial Injury
In Architectural Walls Systems v. Towers , No. 13-1653 (Iowa App. July 16, 2014), the Court of Appeals addressed an issue that arises with some frequency before the commissioner - whether deep vein thrombosis can be an industrial injury for workers' compensation purposes. In doing so, the court affirmed a finding that claimant had a 60% industrial disability. Claimant fractured his right ankle while working for the employer. He had surgery, but six weeks after the surgery, he began having swelling in his right leg. He was diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis and surgery was performed to remove a blood clot and insert a filter to prevent clots from moving to claimant's heart or lungs. Thereafter, claimant was directed to take anticoagulants twice daily. Later testing revealed no active DVT in claimant's right leg. Defendants' doctors (Troll and Mooney) provided claimant with a rating to the leg. Dr. Kuhnlein found that the DVT was related to the ...