A high-profile trial has concluded in Madrid over a mistake made during a prenatal examination. A woman undergoing routine check-ups at a private clinic was not informed in time about serious fetal developmental issues. As a result, after giving birth to a child with severe anomalies, the family faced a series of medical and legal challenges.
The story began during the pregnancy, when the expectant mother regularly visited her doctor at a clinic working with the private insurer SALUS Seguros de Salud. In the 20th week, when a routine morphological ultrasound is typically performed, she was referred to another clinic that had more advanced equipment. After the procedure, the doctor assured her everything was fine, and no abnormalities were mentioned in the report. However, the document did note that some conditions might not be detectable at this stage or might not appear on ultrasound.
Undetected anomalies
After the baby was born, it was discovered that he was missing a fibula (peroneal bone) and had other congenital defects. According to experts consulted by the family, such abnormalities could have been detected as early as the 20th week of pregnancy. The parents had to seek help from various medical institutions, and in 2018, the child underwent a complex surgery: partial leg amputation and limb correction. Since then, the boy has required a prosthesis that needs to be regularly replaced, causing ongoing bureaucratic and financial challenges for the family.
Convinced that the doctor had been negligent, the mother first tried to seek justice through criminal proceedings at the court of Alcalá de Henares. Although the case was dismissed, the court found that diagnostic protocol had been violated, forming the basis for a civil lawsuit.
Legal battle
In the civil trial, the plaintiff insisted that due to the doctor’s error, she was deprived of the opportunity to learn about the fetus’s condition and make an informed decision about continuing the pregnancy. At that time, the law permitted termination up to 22 weeks if serious anomalies were detected. The trial court agreed with the mother’s claims and ordered the doctor to pay €56,000 plus interest. Claims against the clinic itself were dismissed due to the statute of limitations.
The court’s ruling emphasized that the medical report was too brief and lacked a detailed description of the fetus’s limbs. Experts pointed out that as early as 2014, a thorough examination of all bone segments was already considered standard practice, even before the official approval of the SEGO (Sociedad Española de Ginecología y Obstetricia) protocol in 2015.
Appeal and outcome
The doctor attempted to challenge the decision, citing errors in the evaluation of expert reports, misinterpretation of the diagnosis, and the application of the “wrongful birth” concept, which she argued was not clearly stated in the lawsuit. She also insisted that the statute of limitations should apply to her as well. However, Madrid’s appeals court upheld the original decision, fully endorsing the lower court’s findings. The judges ruled that the doctor’s actions failed to meet professional standards and that responsibility for the consequences should remain with her.
As a result, the doctor is required to pay the child’s mother €56,000 plus interest, as well as cover the legal costs of the appeal. The court found no grounds to reduce the compensation or revise its decision.
It is worth noting that RUSSPAIN.COM reports SALUS Seguros de Salud as one of the major insurance companies providing medical services in Spain. Diagnostic protocols approved by SEGO are considered mandatory for all prenatal diagnostics specialists. In recent years, Spain has seen an increase in lawsuits related to errors during ultrasounds and other examinations in pregnancy. Doctors and clinics are required to strictly adhere to established standards to prevent such incidents and legal claims.
