THE HSE HAS APOLOGISED to women whose pregnancies were misdiagnosed as miscarriages.

The statement came today as the HSE released its review of national miscarriage cases which says that a total of 24 cases of miscarriage misdiagnosis occurred in Irish hospitals – around five per cent of the overall cases reviewed.

The review was launched last year after it emerged that some women were wrongly told their babies had died during the pregnancy.

One woman, Melissa Redmond from Dublin, was prescribed an abortifacient (a drug to enduce an abortion) but before taking it, sought a second opinion which informed her that the baby was still alive.

The HSE said in a statement today that after Redmond’s case appeared in the media, hospital helplines received over 400 calls from women concerned their miscarriage had been misdiagnosed.

Eighteen of the misdiagnosed cases occurred within the scope of the review, which covers the last five years, while six more were outside of that timeframe but were included in the review at the request of the women involved.

The HSE said it “apologises to the women affected for the distress that will undoubtedly have been caused to them and their families” and thanked the women who participated in the review for their willingness to share their experiences with the review team.

The review was chaired by Prof William Ledger, head of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the University of Sheffield.

Recommendations

Speaking on the launch of the review, Ledger said that the review found that the 24 cases of misdiagnosis all occurred at an early stage of pregnancy, “when ultrasound diagnosis alone is unreliable, due to the risk of missing a tiny foetus or heartbeat”.

“Over-reliance on ultrasound to diagnose a miscarriage in very early pregnancy has been repeatedly highlighted since the introduction of the technique in the 1970s and we have made recommendations that caution against the use of ultrasound alone to detect a pregnancy before 8 weeks gestation,” he said.

Among the recommendations included in the review are the following:

• All maternity hospitals that provide emergency gynaecological care should have early pregnancy assessment units (EPAUs)
• EPAUs should have a suitable dedicated space for their services and should have adequate staffing with properly trained personnel
• An equipment replacement programme an annual quality assurance and maintenance programme should be in place. When equipment is five years old, image quality and equipment risks should be assessed
• All staff must be certified in carrying out scans of suspected miscarriages

HSE National Clinical Lead for Obstetrics and Gynaecology Prof Michael Turner said that work is “now well underway” in hospitals to implement the review’s recommendations.

Fianna Fáil party whip and former chair of the Oireachtas Health Committee Seán Ó Fearghail said that the report is likely to cause concern to anyone who has suffered a miscarriage.

“A miscarriage is a tremendously difficult experience for any prospective parent, without worrying about the possibility of misdiagnosis,” he said in a statement.

Read the HSE’s National Miscarriage Misdiagnosis Review in full >