Andy Michaelson

Andy Michaelson is a teenager who came into the hospital with severe chronic back pain.

Misdiagnosis
Andy had been having back pain for a few weeks. His mother had taken him to his regular doctor, whom she said was a bad doctor who texted while she was talking to him, who said it was just growing pains. But she believed it was more, because Andy was falling down on the soccer field. So she took him to Seattle Grace Hospital, where Arizona Robbins examined him. After talking through it with Miranda Bailey, Arizona said that he had a mild case of scoliosis and his growth was likely aggravating his spine. She said they'd wait to see if it resolved and if it didn't, he'd come back in for more tests. In the meantime, she gave him a prescription for muscle relaxants.

He later came back to the hospital with serious pain in his inguinal area, legs, and back. He'd been vomiting all night. Arizona wanted to run a 3D MRI, but his mother's insurance wouldn't pay for it, so Webber wouldn't let her run it, so she was forced to discharge him and refer him back to his primary care physician. ("Good Mourning")

Familial
His mother is very protective of him. When he was hospitalized, she stayed by his side and when she believed the doctors treating him were distracted, she threatened to take him to another hospital. ("Good Mourning")

Notes and Trivia

 * He was 15 at the time of his hospitalization.