Inset: Irene Perretta (Cody White Funeral Service). Background: Bridgeport Hospital Milford Campus in Milford, Conn., where Irene Perretta was allegedly treated (Google Maps).
A Connecticut woman suffered a collapsed lung, sepsis and other deadly complications after a hospital physician assistant "improperly inserted" a feeding tube into her airway, a lawsuit alleges.
Instead of traveling down Irene Perretta's esophagus and into her digestive tract, the feeding tube that she was supposed to receive at Bridgeport Hospital's Milford Campus was placed down the 80-year-old's windpipe or trachea, according to a complaint filed by her family in Bridgeport Superior Court.
The tube "pierced into the surrounding pleural space" and caused a "pneumothorax, collapsed lung and a right sided pleural effusion that required placement of a chest tube," the complaint says.
The error allegedly contributed to complications that included "sepsis, empyema and/or aspiration pneumonia," which Perretta's family members claim led to her death in March 2025. They are suing Bridgeport Hospital and its operator, Yale New Haven Health Services Corporation, for medical negligence.
"As a direct result the decedent sustained additional injury, required further invasive intervention and suffered a materially worsened clinical course, further contributing to the deterioration of the decedent's medical condition resulting and/or contributing to her death," the complaint says.
Perretta's family alleges that when she was treated at the hospital on May 28 and 29, 2024, medical staff improperly inserted a feeding tube, causing it to enter her "airway and/or pleural space," or the lining that surrounded the lungs. The alleged mistake set off a chain of medical complications that could easily have been avoided, according to the complaint.
"The standard of care required objective radiographic confirmation of correct tube-tip position below the diaphragm before the tube was used for any feeding, medication, or flush," a board-certified physician and fellow of the American College of Physicians wrote in an opinion letter and review of Perretta's case, which her family has included in the complaint.
"The occurrence of a pneumothorax and the potential pleural contamination strongly suggest that this standard was not met," the physician said. "As a direct and proximate result, Ms. Perretta sustained additional injury, required further invasive intervention, and suffered a materially worsened clinical course."
The complaint accuses Bridgeport Hospital and its staff of failing to provide the level of care expected of medical professionals in Connecticut. Among the alleged failures, the complaint says, the medical staff "failed to properly diagnose and treat the decedent" and "failed to properly monitor the decedent's condition" after allegedly botching the feeding tube procedure. It also accuses medical staff of not fully explaining the feeding tube procedure's risks, alternatives or benefits before insertion.
"The decedent sustained painful permanent and severe personal injuries and damages which contributed to her death and emotional distress and mental anguish from the improper insertion of a feeding tube," the complaint concludes.
Perretta's family is seeking monetary damages and other relief.
Yale New Haven Health expressed condolences to the family in a statement to the Hartford Courant, but declined to comment on the lawsuit.
"Bridgeport Hospital extends our sincere condolences to the patient's family and loved ones as they grieve this loss," a spokesperson said. "Our caregivers work hard to provide compassionate, high-quality care to every patient we serve. Because this matter is in litigation, we will address the allegations through the appropriate legal channels."
Yale New Haven Health has filed a motion seeking dismissal, arguing that the lawsuit does not meet certain procedural requirements under Connecticut law. The motion also argues that the opinion letter and case review provided by the physician in the complaint lack sufficient factual detail explaining how hospital staff allegedly departed from the applicable standard of care.
Perretta's obituary describes her as a "courageous woman" who survived breast cancer and colon cancer. "She never let any challenge get her down," the obituary says.
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