Man with heartburn says doctor burned him

CHARLESTON - A Kanawha County couple is suing the doctor it hired for serious heartburn treatment.

David and Marlene Walker filed a lawsuit June 1 in Kanawha Circuit Court against South Charleston doctor Paul Dean Kyer.

They say he botched David Walker's treatment for gastroesophogeal reflux disease, more commonly known as "GERD."

The lawsuit alleges Kyer attempted to give Walker an esophagogastroscopy with an injection of Enteryx, a treatment that helps prevent stomach fluids from rising into the esophagus.

"Following the Enteryx procedure, within 24 hours, the plaintiff became unable to swallow liquids and was brought back to the hospital for a repeat endoscopy and dilation," the lawsuit says.

Since then, Walker says he has had multiple procedures done in an attempt to correct the damage done by the procedure.

"Since that time, the plaintiff has continued to experience significant problems with swallowing, especially solids, and also continues to suffer from gastroesophogeal reflux disease, for which condition the Enteryx procedure was initially done to correct," the complaint says.

Walker says he has suffered bodily injuries, pain and disfigurement, humiliation and embarrassment. Marlene Walker says she has experienced a loss of consortium with her husband.

"Defendant failed to properly and correctly evaluate the plaintiff and failed to properly and correctly perform Enteryx surgery on David R. Walker," the complaint says.

Richard D. Lindsay of Tabor, Lindsay and Associates in Charleston is the plaintiffs' attorney.

Judge Jim Stucky has been assigned the case.

Kanawha Circuit Court case number 06-C-1047