Man sues over ‘birth brain damage’
Thomas O’Connor is profoundly disabled, spastic quadriplegic, and is blind and has to be fed through a tube.
Counsel Desmond O’Neill told the High Court yesterday that experts will say two alleged episodes of oxygen deprivation during his delivery and when he was less than one hour old contributed to the brain damage.
Thomas requires 24-hour care and has been in residential care since he was 12. His mother visits him every day and he goes home for weekends and holidays.
Through his mother Ann O’Connor, of Ard Curley, Collooney, Co Sligo, Thomas sued the HSE and consultant Carthage Carroll, who practices at Sligo General Hospital, over the management and care of his mother’s labour and his birth and care at Sligo General Hospital on September 6, 1996.
It is claimed that there was an alleged failure on the part of the HSE to ensure that Ms O’Connor was competently and properly managed and there was an alleged failute to inform the consultant Dr Carroll of the abnormal CTG results in a timely fashion and there was an alleged delay in carrying out a caesarean and later an allegedly ineffective resuscitation with a malpositioned tube was carried out. The HSE denies all claims.
Dr Carroll, who denies all claims, says he was not made aware of the abnormal CTG trace prior to his arrival on the ward at 7.50am and once he inspected the CTG trace he acted with appropriate urgency and speed.
Opening the case, Mr O’Neill said what happened was extraordinary and inexplicable and that, at 5.30am, the CTG trace was discontinued when it was inappropriate to do so in circumstances where the trace was displaying the baby was in distress. The CTG, counsel said was recommenced at 7am.
Between 4.30am and 8am, counsel said, there was clear evidence of foetal distress. Mr O’Neill said the consutlant examined Ms O’Connor around 8.10am and an emergency caesarean was carried out at 9am, which Mr O’Neill said his side contended was four hours later than it should be.
When Thomas was born, he said he showed no signs of life and four minutes later began gasping and a tube was inserted to assist his ventilation and breathing. Counsel said the tube was inserted to the depth of 14cm and should have been put in at between 9 and 10cm Counsel said the baby was not effectively ventialated and had a heart attack and ceased to breathe on the way from the delivery theatre to the ICU at about 9.25am. Over the next 30 minutes, counsel said, all efforts were made to revive the baby and it was not until 9.55am that the depth of the tube was discovered.
Ms O’Connor said she thought Thomas was a “normal baby” until he was a year old, when she took him to a paediatrician.
“He told me Thomas had severe brain damage when he was born due to a lack of oxygen. He said he wouldn’t lead a normal life and he would more or less be confined to a wheelchair,” she said.
