Dentist Sued In Woman's Death

SEATTLE - The family of a Connecticut woman is suing the Seattle Sheraton Hotel, a Pike Street pharmacy and a local dentist, claiming their negligence caused her death.

In a lawsuit filed earlier this week in King County Superior Court, Seattle attorneys Peter Byrnes and Paul Taylor allege that Seattle dentist Dr. Frederick Klopfenstein incorrectly prescribed penicillin to Muriel Moore, 51, of Waterbury, Conn.

The suit alleges that Moore, who was visiting Seattle for an education convention last April, told Klopfenstein she was allergic to cephalosporin, a family of antibiotics that includes penicillin, when she visited him for a toothache.

The suit says that on April 23, Klopfenstein prescribed penicillin for Moore, and she had the prescription filled at a Rite Aid pharmacy.

After returning to her hotel room, she took the medication but then began to choke and suffocate from anaphylactic shock, according to the suit. A maid entered the room about that time and notified her supervisor of the situation. The maid again alerted her supervisor five minutes later because no help had arrived.

Moore was taken to Harborview Medical Center, unconscious and brain dead on arrival, according to the suit. She died May 17 after spending three weeks on life-support systems.

The family's attorneys allege Moore would not have died if workers at the Seattle Sheraton had acted more quickly in contacting medical help. The family also believes the pharmacy failed to determine whether Moore was allergic to any drugs.

Rite Aid officials declined to comment on the suit yesterday because they had not yet been served with copies of it.

Louie Richmond, a spokesman for the Sheraton, insists the hotel staff acted as quickly as possible in getting medical help for Moore.

Lish Whitson, an attorney for Klopfenstein, said he had not had a chance to fully review the suit but thinks the dentist acted "appropriately" and should not be part of the wrongful death suit.

The trial is to begin May 8, 2000.