Doctors misdiagnose tumour as pregnancy, woman moves to Madras high court
The petitioner went to a private scan centre where it was confirmed that she had developed a small fibroid in the anterior wall of her uterus and that she was not pregnant
A woman has approached the Madras High Court seeking a compensation of Rs five lakh and action against doctors of a government hospital here who allegedly misdiagnosed a tumour in her abdomen as pregnancy.
Justice T Raja, before whom the petition came up yesterday, sought some clarifications from the government pleader with regard to the woman’s medical reports and posted the matter for further hearing after two weeks.
In her plea, the petitioner, who got married in 2009, said she went to the hospital in March 2016 as she was experiencing menstrual irregularities.
Post examination, the doctors told her she was pregnant and that she was due for delivery in November, the petitioner said.
As months went by, she did not experience labour pain. So the woman went back to the hospital where the doctors conducted a scan and told her that the baby was fine. She was asked to wait a few more days.
The petitioner said she developed an abnormal abdominal pain on November 21 and was rushed to the hospital.
To her shock, she was informed by the doctors that she was not pregnant and it was only a small tumour in her abdomen, the plea said.
The petitioner then went to a private scan centre where it was confirmed that she had developed a small fibroid in the anterior wall of her uterus and that she was not pregnant.
The petitioner also alleged that all her papers, including medical reports, were removed from a book where details of regular check-up are noted.
She submitted that she was wrongly declared pregnant by the doctors and unnecessarily put on medication for pregnancy.
She said her husband, a daily-wage labourer, had approached the hospital authorities seeking compensation and action against the erring doctors, but received no response.
