A was born on 10 July 1997 in good condition. The next day he was unwell. He was investigated and found to have pulmonary atresia and intact ventricular septum. In August 1998 he underwent a surgical procedure (Hemi-Fontan). A sustained brain damage in the course of the operation.
The issue was whether the circumstances in which the surgery was carried out should be characterised as negligent by the standards of 1998 and whether that negligence, if it occurred, caused or materially contributed to the damage that A suffered.
A died on 6 May 2015.
The issue on breach of duty was whether, in the course of the necessary period of circulatory arrest during the Hemi-Fontan operation A’s body (particularly his brain) was cooled sufficiently for the operation to be completed safely.
Claim dismissed.
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