TRANG -- A young husband is preparing a complaint to the Medical Council accusing a doctor at Trang Hospital of botching an operation to remove an extra-uterine pregnancy, leaving his new wife unable to conceive any children.
Ekapong Kaewdee, an employee of a community hospital, said he married his wife in March this year.
In June, she fell pregnant. She suffered pains in her stomach, nausea and vomiting. He took her to a clinic where a doctor did an ultrasound scan and declared she was seven weeks pregnant but the foetus was developing outside her womb, known as an ectopic or tubal pregnancy.
The doctor issued a letter referring her to Trang Hospital for surgery.
At Trang Hospital, the doctor who handled the case decided the foetus was attached to the left fallopian tube, which would have to be removed.
Mr Ekapong said his family protested, explaining that the doctor at the clinic said the foetus was attached to the right fallopian tube. The letter of referral also confirmed that.
The doctor at Trang Hospital insisted that it was on the left and operated on her, removing her left fallopian tube.
On July 16, his wife's symptoms returned. He took her back to the first clinic. The doctor there was surprised when told that her left tube had been removed, instead of the right one. He did another ultrasound scan, which confirmed that the foetus was still attached outside the womb and on the right side. The foetus was by then 10 weeks old.
Mr Ekapong took his wife back to see the doctor at Trang Hospital and asked him why her left tube had been removed even though he had raised an objection. The doctor did not even make another ultrasound scan to check, he said.
As a result of the mistake, his wife had to undergo further surgery and had her right fallopian tube removed. This meant his wife had permanently lost her ability to have a baby.
This had made him and his family very sad, he said.
Mr Ekapong said he would send a letter of complaint to the Public Health Ministry and the Medical Council.
Executives of Trang Hospital could not be reached for comment.