An obstetrician was suspended after a mother was told her baby was healthy but was then later born with multiple deformities. According to the Daily Mail, the doctor missed the fact that the baby was not developing properly during the mother’s multiple sonograms.
On October 7, little Rodrigo was born in Setúbal, Portugal. However, his parents Marlene Simão and David Ribeiro admitted to being very surprised when their baby boy was born with deformities because they were reassured time and time again by their obstetrician that he was fine.
Baby Born with Multiple Deformities After Doctor Failed to Notice
As El Mundo reports, their obstetrician Artur Carvalho allegedly told them their son was in good health repeatedly throughout Simão’s pregnancy. According to reports, it was only after Rodrigo was born that they learned he never developed a nose, eyes, or part of his skull missing.
The complaint issued against Carvalho suggested that the doctor should have been able to spot the abnormalities at 12 weeks gestation.
In an interview, Simão said she had a feeling something was wrong with her son’s health after getting a 5-D scan at the private clinic, Ecosado, where Carvalho worked. She wanted the scan in order to get a better photo of her growing son.
The technician performing the scan mentioned to Simão and Ribeiro that he saw some defects in the scan. However, when Simão confronted Carvalho telling him what the other technician found, he told the mother that 5-D scans are often inaccurate and then reassured the expectant mother that her baby was healthy.
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And following Rodrigo’s birth, Simão and Ribeiro were told that he wouldn’t survive more than a few hours. However, Rodrigo is now 21 days old and still alive. According to El Mundo, Rodrigo is able to breathe on his own and has taken to a bottle. But he is still losing weight every day.
Simão hasn’t left her baby boy’s side since, constantly encouraging Rodrigo to keep fighting. Doctors believe it is the mother’s constant encouragement that is giving her baby boy the strength to survive.
And this isn’t the first time Carvalho had a complaint of this caliber issued against him. However, it was only after Simão’s formal complaint was received that a prosecutor began looking into criminal charges against Carvalho.
As the Daily Mail reports, Carvalho was eventually suspended after it was discovered that he has missed crucial diagnoses for several different patients. It is reported that there are at least six other complaints against the obstetrician. So far, Carvalho has been suspended for six months, but he has yet to be prosecuted for his alleged mistakes.
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