The widow of a Westmoreland County man is suing Independence Health System and Latrobe Area Hospital over the December 2023 death of her husband.

Tammy Dreistadt, of Latrobe, filed the suit July 9 saying her husband, Daniel Dreistadt, 59, went to the hospital, which is part of the health system, on Nov. 19, 2023, with complaints of weakness, dizziness, fullness in his ears, left knee pain and difficulty bearing weight.

Testing in the Latrobe emergency department revealed Daniel Dreistadt was severely anemic. He was admitted and placed under the care of internal medicine physicians, according to the suit.

An orthopedic surgeon diagnosed him Nov. 22 with a non-erythematous left knee with moderate effusion, or a rash that does not present redness or inflammation on the knee with some escape of fluid. The surgeon removed 80 milliliters of slightly cloudy fluid from the knee and had it tested, according to the suit.

The surgeon examined Dreistadt again Nov. 24 and found his knee was swollen. He also told him the test of fluid from his knee was initially negative for any growth. At a later time, cultures revealed a type of bacteria, according to the suit.

The surgeon aspirated the knee again and removed 10 cubic centimeters of slightly cloudy fluid that was sent to Independence’s pathology lab for testing. He told Dreistadt he could be started on antibiotics while waiting for the test results, according to the suit.

The health system and hospital were aware Dreistadt was severely allergic to penicillin, according to the suit.

During the evening of Nov. 24, another doctor ordered an intravenous infusion of vancomycin, an antibiotic, and a nurse administered it just before 8 p.m. Dreistadt began calling out for help about 20 minutes later, complaining of chest tightness and shortness of breath, and the nurse notified a doctor, according to the suit.

About 20 minutes after that, the nurse found Dreistadt’s oxygen level was 87%. The amount of oxygen he was receiving was increased, according to the suit.

Around 9:17 p.m., a doctor ordered a stop to the vancomycin infusion and ordered a different antibiotic, linezolid, after concluding that Dreistadt was having an allergic reaction to the vancomycin, according to the suit.

Minutes later, Dreistadt complained about chills. A check of his vital signs found his body temperature had risen. A doctor ordered Benadryl and Tylenol for the allergic reaction, and it was administered about 10 minutes later, according to the suit.

About 12 minutes later, he had agonal, or irregular, breathing and no heartbeat, the suit said.

A rapid response team was summoned and a code blue was called. Dreistadt was resuscitated, intubated and sent to the intensive care unit, but he never regained consciousness. Testing found a catastrophic hypoxic brain injury, or a brain injury caused by lack of oxygen, and he had no meaningful brain activity, according to the suit.

He was transitioned to only comfort measures on Dec. 6 and died Dec. 7, the suit said.

His immediate cause of death was considered anoxic encephalopathy, according to the suit. Anoxic encephalopathy is a condition in which the brain is deprived of blood and oxygen.

The suit alleges vicarious liability and direct liability claims of wrongful death and survival action.

“Due to pending litigation and patient privacy regulations, we decline to comment,” the health system said in an email response to the suit.