Girl left with 'profound cosmetic issue' after six eye surgeries, court hears
At one stage the little girl who had the surgery at University Hospital Waterford for a downward looking eye was allegedly overcorrected and her eye then looked upward.
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In the proceedings it was claimed that after all the surgeries the girl was allegedly left in a worse condition than she was in 2012 when she first had surgery as a toddler.
The girl, who is now a teenager, on Thursday settled a High Court action against the HSE for €120,000 over her treatment at University Hospital Waterford for a congenital squint in one of her eyes.
The settlement is without an admission of liability.
Her counsel Alan Keating SC with David Griffin Bl and instructed by Agustus Cullen Law told the court the girl was six months old when she was brought to the Waterford hospital as she had a congenital squint in her left eye.
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Counsel said between the ages of two and seven years of age the little girl had six surgeries involving the eye muscles which their side would say 'were either wrong or should not have taken place at all.'
Mr Keating said the first surgery on the toddler ended up with an overcorrection where the child's eye then deviated upwards. Her right eye that did not have the squint was also operated on.
At one stage counsel commented: 'Really, they got it all wrong.'
Counsel said the surgeries did not impact on the girl's eyesight but there is ' a profound cosmetic issue.'
Experts on their side he said would say that if nothing was done, it was likely the girl would now have a normal appearance and the first surgery was allegedly the wrong surgery. On the balance of probabilities, if nothing had been done the girl, Counsel said would have ended up with a normal appearance.
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Counsel said experts on their side would also say that further squint surgery would be challenging, hazardous and unpredictable.
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In the proceedings against the HSE it was claimed there was an alleged failure to discuss fully the risks and benefits of surgery including the risk of not improving the condition and needing further surgical procedures before carrying out the first surgery in 2012.
There was also it was claimed an alleged failure to have such a conversation with the little girl's parents in advance of the procedures.
All of the claims were denied and the settlement is without an admission of liability.
Approving the settlement Mr Justice Paul Coffey said it was fair and reasonable and he conveyed his best wishes to the teenager.
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