Diagnostic centre fined ₹2.2 lakh for incorrect prenatal test report
HYDERABAD: The Ranga Reddy District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission has taken strong exception to Vijaya Diagnostic Centre for issuing an incorrect diagnostic report during a critical prenatal test. The Commission held the centre guilty of medical negligence and deficiency in service.
The Commission directed the diagnostic centre to refund ₹1,700 collected from the complainant. It also ordered the centre to pay ₹2 lakh as compensation for mental agony and financial loss. In addition, it asked the centre to pay ₹20,000 towards litigation expenses, taking the total liability to ₹2.2 lakh.
The complainant, R Bhargavi, visited her gynaecologist on March 15, 2024, after doctors suspected a cyst on the foetus’s neck. The doctor advised her to undergo a Nuchal Translucency (NT) scan.
Bhargavi underwent the NT scan at Vijaya Diagnostic Centre in Dilsukhnagar on March 16, 2024. The report stated that everything was normal. It recorded the NT value as 1.8 mm and did not mention any cyst or abnormal growth.
Dissatisfied with the findings, Bhargavi underwent another scan two days later at a diagnostic centre in Kothapet. The second scan detected an 11 mm cyst on the left side of the foetus’s neck.
Doctors warned that reliance on the initial report could have posed serious risks to both the mother and the foetus. Acting on medical advice, Bhargavi underwent a medical termination of pregnancy on March 22, 2024.
Bhargavi approached the Consumer Commission on July 3, 2024. She alleged that the incorrect report caused her severe mental trauma and financial loss. Vijaya Diagnostic Centre claimed that the cyst was not visible during the NT scan conducted at its facility.
After reviewing medical records and evidence, the Commission found that the failure to detect the cyst amounted to negligence and deficiency in service. It then passed orders accordingly.
