Arizona patient awarded $300,000 for penile implant gone awry
KINGMAN, Ariz. — A jury in northwest Arizona has awarded $300,000 to the plaintiff in a civil case involving a penile implant gone wrong.
The panel deliberated less than an hour Friday before finding in favor of the 72-year-old plaintiff, Dr. Horst Filtzer, of Fort Mohave.
Filtzer sued Bullhead City urologist and surgeon Dr. Bashir Azher for complications arising from installation of what was Filtzer’s third penile implant in October 2007. Trial testimony indicated that Filtzer endured months of discomfort and pain from staph and MRSA infections that set in after the surgery.
Plaintiff attorney Bradley Booke argued that Filtzer should be compensated for anxiety and depression, loss of energy and his sacrifice of the pleasures of a marital relationship.
Defense attorney T. Scott King argued that Filtzer opted for the procedure fully aware that infection complications are a recognized risk associated with penile implants. He told the jury that Azher met the standards of care required under the law and that the defendant did not cause the infection.
Booke countered that Azher was negligent for failing to insist that the implant be removed during a February 2008 office visit. He told the jury that Azher tried to treat the infection and complied with Filtzer’s wish that the sex aid device be left in place.
“When in doubt, take it out,” is the industry standard, Booke told the jury. Filtzer ultimately removed the implant three months later, in May 2008.
