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French patient left blind after stomach operation

Oliver Gee
Oliver Gee - [email protected]
French patient left blind after stomach operation
A court will determine if the hospital is guilty of medical malpractice. Photo: Monash/Flickr

A woman who went to hospital for what was meant to be a routine stomach operation was left blind, with her family now suing for damages to the tune of €2 million.

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Reine Cailton, a 63-year-old woman from Angers in western France, was admitted to hospital in 2006 complaining of abdominal pain.
 
It took 24 hours before medics began surgery for what should have been a routine operation for intestinal obstruction, reported Le Parisien newspaper. 
 
However, the woman went into cardiac arrest during the operation and the blood supply to her optic nerves was cut. She woke up blind.
 
In the nine years since the surgery, Cailton has been left fighting depression and often in need of psychiatric care.
 
"I'll never be able to see my grand children grow up," she told 20 Minutes newspaper.
 
The woman's lawyer Nicolas Orhan has slammed the medical team for "negligence", "making inappropriate decisions", "delayed surgical treatment," and "inadequate support", reported Le Parisien.
 
The Angers high court will determine on Tuesday whether the hospital is guilty of medical malpractice, with the woman's lawyer asking for €2 million in damages.

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