Hyderabad: Doctors defended a surgeon, whose four women patients died due to complications from contraceptive surgeries in Ibrahimpatnam, citing multiple reasons for the cause of death. They said that the surgeon was highly experienced with a prior record of undertaking complicated procedures.
Dr K. Shilpi Reddy, clinical director of obstetrics & gynaecology at KIMS Cuddles, said the victims could have had pre-existing conditions, such as Covid-19, dengue, influenza A or H1N1, all of which have been prevalent in Hyderabad since monsoon onset.
“If a Covid-19 patient is given anaesthesia, it will severely affect the lungs. And tests to determine if the patients had any of these conditions were probably not performed before the surgeries. There could also be an issue with the drugs administered to the patients,” she said.
Dr Reddy said that there were precedents for medical mishaps during minor surgeries such as tubectomies and abortions due to the carelessness of medical personnel.
Dr Shantha Kumari, the president of the federation of obstetric and gynaecological societies of India (FOGSI), said, “Not everything is in the doctor’s control and no medical procedure is 100 per cent safe or fool-proof. While sterilisation itself is a simple procedure, infections appear in patients even in the best of institutes. A possible reason for this could be the misuse of antibiotics by people, which is very high in the country, and leads to them developing resistance to pathogens.”
Dr Kumari said that presently, the government, as well as doctors, are slowly moving from permanent contraceptive procedures to long-lasting reversible contraception.
Following the deaths, the health department cited improper sterilisation as a possibility for the mishap. A report from the director of public health, Dr G. Srinivasa Rao, is awaited.
