Any solicitors or lawyers to advise please?

[abbs1]

Not sure where to begin. Apologies this may be lengthy but please stick with me.

I had severe sickness whilst pregnant with hyperemesis (hg) 3 years ago and spent months in and out of hospital for treatment. I was put on multiple medications as well as 2 different steroids. IV and tablet ones. It was the only way to stop me vomiting as I couldn't even hold water down.

Every time I was given these medications I questioned multiple times to all the midwives, Dr's and consultants asking if it could have any detrimental affects on my unborn child physically or mentally. Each time I was told no, its safe. I said are you 100% sure and they said yes. My MIL was with me and questioned it as well.

My child is now nearly 3yrs old and has been showing signs of SEN since around 15months. It's been an absolute battle with health visitors, GPs and paediatricians etc to get help for him as "covid baby" is all I've had back in comments. I've said no thats wrong as all his little friends are fine and born within a couple months of him. He is finally getting assessed in the next few weeks with different tests, due to severe speech delay, and showing autistic traits/adhd, possible hearing issues etc.

I've been researching a bit myself and read that in pregnancy the medications I was given could cause autism/adhd etc in the child. I am absolutely fuming now that I was allowed to be given these medications. I was so unwell when I was given them I didn't have the energy to research enough myself of which I'm really annoyed I didn't.

If it comes back he does have these SEN, would I have any chance of sueing the NHS for negligence of my unborn child by giving me medication knowing it could harm him?

I really do sympathise with you as I had HG myself twice and needed to take high does of zofran throughout (ondansetron) to avoid hospitalisation. But I think it will be very difficult for you to successfully show causation between the drugs you were prescribed and any condition that you child might have. I am a lawyer, albeit my specialism is employment law. But I do know the thresholds for successfully demonstrating medical negligence are very high. So sorry that you're struggling with things at the moment and hope your DC is ok.

I had severe HG, and coincidentally my son is autistic. However that's not the cause of his autism.

You'd be extremely unlikely to win a negligence case. Not treating your sickness would have had more severe consequences, dehydration can have significant impact on your baby and you. You could literally die of dehydration.

Very few medications used in pregnancy are considered safe because it isn't tested. You cannot do drug trials on pregnant women to test them. Doctors weigh up the risks of treating you v not treating you and this instance, if you couldn't even keep water down then the risk of not treating you and consequences of that are significantly higher than the potential affects of medication.

You cannot prove, which you would need to do, that this mediation caused your child's difficulties. It's highly unlikely it has. Research isn't fact, it's research, it's theory. You could link anything if you tried hard enough. And it will never be proven because you cannot test it in a controlled way.

I get it's upsetting to see your child struggle with things that are 'normal' but this won't bring you any comfort.

Proving that the SEN was caused by the medication, although a massive mountain to climb, is not enough I'm afraid.

You would have to prove on balance of probabilities (i) that the SEN was caused by the medication; PLUS (ii) that giving the drugs to you in pregnancy was negligent (i.e. that in all the circumstances, it was not in the range of reasonable treatments which would have been offered by a body of competent Drs in the relevant field, assumed to have the knowledge about those drugs that existed at the time) AND/OR (iii) that you were not adequately warned of the potential risks of taking those drugs (to the extent such risks were known at the time). I would say your chances are pretty much nil, unless you can find some proper peer-reviewed medical literature which supports those points. I doubt it exists. With real sympathy with the difficulties you and your child are going through, I would say do not waste your energy on this, focus on your family instead.

This is what I thought would be the answer but just wanted to put it out there to ask.
I will continue to support my little boy all I can and know I'm doing the best I can for him. 💙

Can you provide a link please to information about the drugs you were given and the link to autism?

This categorically does not work for hyperemesis

Well it worked for me!

It did for me. Everyone is different you know.

No that is not scientific fact.

these guys are the expects have gave actual facts: www.pregnancysicknesssupport.org.uk/healthcare-professionals/medications-and-treatments/

Omg you’re so right! Thank you for enlightening me, you’ve changed my life