IRMA's Doyle claims medical negligence caused brain damage to wife

A leading figure in the music industry has brought a High Court action claiming his wife has suffered irreversible brain damage as a result of medical negligence.

IRMA's Dick Doyle of Wyatville Park, Loughlinstown, Co Dublin is suing the HSE and consultant Joe Duignan based at St Michael's Hospital for damages on behalf of his wife Avril who suffers from loss of memory and depression.

Dick Doyle told the court Avril was "bubbly, vivacious and stunning" when they first met.

Now his lawyers say she is a completely changed person, vulnerable and incapable of returning to work due to irreparable brain damage.

The mother of one became ill with severe stomach pain during her honeymoon in 2005 and on her return home underwent a laparotomy at St Michael's Hospital in Dun Laoghaire.

The court heard her condition deteriorated, that she became extremely ill and was readmitted for a second operation.

Her husband says Avril never got any better and after several weeks she started acting very strangely, telling him that she was pregnant and that her late father had been to visit.

He is suing for damages alleging her irreparable condition is due to a lack of Vitamin B1 or thiamine in her nutrition at St Michael's.