CHAD GILBERTSON, Employee/Appellant,
v.
IDEACOM MID AM. INC. and AMTRUST GROUP, Employer-Insurer/Respondents
and
TWIN CITIES SPINE CTR., PHYSICIANS DIAGNOSTICS & REHAB, NORAN NEUROLOGICAL CLINIC, MINN. DEP’T OF HUMAN SERVS., UCARE/OPTUM, and TWIN CITES SURGERY CTR., Intervenors.
No. WC18-6213
Minnesota Workers Compensation
Workers’ Compensation Court of Appeals
March 4, 2019
CAUSATION
– SUBSTANTIAL EVIDENCE. Substantial evidence, including
medical records and expert medical opinion, supported the
compensation judge’s findings determining that the
employee’s work injury was temporary.
David
K. Cody, The Cody Law Group, Vadnais Heights, Minnesota, for
the Appellant.
Scott
A. Stoneking and Lauren N. Harvey, McCollum, Crowley,
Moschet, Miller & Laak, Bloomington, Minnesota, for the
Respondents.
Determined by: Sean M. Quinn, Judge, Gary M. Hall, Judge,
Deborah K. Sundquist, Judge
Compensation Judge: Sandra J. Grove
Affirmed.
OPINION
SEAN
M. QUINN, Judge.
The
employee appeals from the compensation judge’s
determination that the employee’s May 14, 2015, work
injury was temporary, and from the denial of some claims. As
the compensation judge’s decision was supported by
substantial evidence, including expert medical opinion, we
affirm.
BACKGROUND
On May
14, 2015, the employee, Chad Gilbertson, was in an automobile
collision while in the course and scope of his employment
with the employer, Ideacom Mid-America, Inc.
The
collision occurred in a parking lot on the employer’s
premises. The employee’s vehicle was broadsided by a
vehicle driven by a co-worker. The employee did not see the
other vehicle and, was therefore surprised and unprepared for
the impact. The employee estimated he was traveling 25 miles
per hour and the other vehicle was traveling 25-30 miles per
hour. The driver of the other vehicle described both vehicles
as traveling at no more than 10 miles per hour at the time of
impact. The other driver also testified that just prior to
the collision, both of the vehicles were stopped and about
10-15 feet apart.
Damage
to the body of the employee’s vehicle appeared minimal,
however, the vehicle was not drivable as the right front
wheel was broken. The cost of repair was estimated at
$4,400.00, and given the value of the employee’s
vehicle, amounted to a total loss.
The
employee did not suffer any symptoms at the time of the
collision, but later in the day began developing pain in his
neck, upper back, and, to a lesser degree, his lower back. He
self-treated until May 18, 2015, when he sought care from Dr.
Richard Endris, a chiropractor. The employee exhibited
symptoms of pain from the neck to the low back with the worst
pain at the neck. Dr. Endris diagnosed neck, thoracic, rib,
pelvis, wrist, jaw, and headache injuries. Most of Dr.
Endris’s treatment notes were fairly consistent in
showing progressive improvement of the employee’s
symptoms. The employer and insurer accepted primary liability
for admitted work-related injuries to the employee’s
neck, mid-back, and low back.
The
employee continued to treat with Dr. Endris over the next
several months. The frequency of treatment was reduced from
three times per week to once every other week. The employee
described slow improvement of his neck and upper back pain
during this time.
Due to
the persistence of ongoing symptoms, Dr. Endris referred the
employee for a neurological consultation. On October 10,
2015, the employee was examined by Dr. Susan Evans at Noran
Neurological. The employee exhibited tenderness of the
cervical paraspinal muscles and spasm at C5-6 and T1-2, and
spasm at L4-5. Dr. Evans diagnosed a myoligamentous injury to
the employee’s cervical, thoracic, and lumbar spine
with cervicogenic headaches. As the employee’s symptoms
were mostly in his neck and upper back, Dr. Evans ordered
MRIs of the cervical and thoracic spine, which were done on
October 12, 2015. Both scans were interpreted as normal.
The
employee continued to complain of headaches and...
