LOS ANGELES (CN) - Kaiser’s delayed diagnosis of a woman’s back injury left her with permanent damage, she claims in a Los Angeles County Superior Court medical malpractice lawsuit.

     Paula Vanduser sued Kaiser Foundation Hospital, Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc., Southern California Permanente Medical Group and two doctors – John Min, M.D. and Ngan Vuong, M.D. Her husband Eric Vanduser sued for loss of consortium.

     According to the lawsuit, Paula Vanduser, 56 hurt her back at work. She is a teacher for handicapped children, it says.

     From July 22 to Oct. 28, 2013, Vanduser claims she saw nine Kaiser doctors, including Drs. Min and Vuong, and a physical therapist, while the pain from her injury got worse.

     During that time she had two MRIs and was diagnosed with a variety of different conditions, including sciatica, minimal degenerative disc disease, “piriformis syndrome,” (described in the complaint as “a neuromuscular condition that is caused when the piriformis muscle compresses the sciatic nerve,”), paresthesia and myfacial pain syndrome, none of which were correct, according to the complaint.

     Meanwhile, Vanduser’s pain got worse, including not just her back but her leg, buttock, hip, foot and toes, according to the complaint.

     Vanduser left the Kaiser system in Nov. 2013, and at that point was correctly diagnosed with a herniated disc and “mild central and lateral recess stenosis,” according to the complaint. She had surgery on Nov. 27, it says.

     “However, due to the delay in diagnosis and surgical intervention, plaintiff has had an extremely complicated postoperative course which plaintiff alleges was caused in whole or in part by the delay in diagnosis and surgical intervention during her care at Kaiser. Plaintiff alleges that the delay in proper diagnosis and treatment has resulted in damage to plaintiff, which damage is believed to be permanent and irreparable,” the complaint states.

     The Vandusers seek general and compensatory damages and costs of suit. They are represented by Sohalia Sagheb in Woodland Hills.