Killer blood clot ignored by docs
WHEN seven medics told new mum Alison Taylor the throbbing in her leg was nothing to worry about, she trusted them.
Tragically, they failed to spot the blood clot the 29-year-old developed while pregnant with daughter Yvie- Mae. And just 16 days after giving birth, she died in husband Darren’s arms.
Last month, after a seven-year legal battle, health bosses finally admitted they were to blame for the mum-of-three’s death.
Darren, 39, a removal man, received a six- figure sum in compensation but says it will never make up for their loss.
He said: “Alison was a wonderful person, an amazing wife and mother. It kills me that she’s not here to see our children grow up.
“You put your trust in doctors but I wish I’d challenged everything they said.”
Medics failed to diagnose the deep vein thrombosis, despite the fact they told Alison she was at high risk of developing such a clot in pregnancy.
Many mums-to-be suffer from clots because the level of bloodclotting proteins increases in pregnancy. They are also 20 times more likely to develop DVT in the six weeks after giving birth than at any other time in their life.
In t he t wo weeks between giving birth in March 2010 and her death, Alison spoke to FOUR midwives and THREE doctors, who told her not to panic about the swelling and pain in her leg.
Darren even took her to Leicester Royal Infirmary six days after Yvie-Mae’s birth, but docs said they could not perform a scan as it was Saturday. A coroner later ruled it could have saved her life.
Her GP also dismissed it as cramp and sent her home with painkillers. Had he prescribed blood thinning medication, she would have survived.
Around 80 per cent of pregnancy- related blood clots occur in the left leg but they can also be found in other parts of the body, such as the pelvis.
Symptoms include swelling, pain, warm skin and redness, often at the back of the leg, just below the knee.
Alison, a healthcare assistant from Leicester, lost consciousness in the bath after the deadly clot travelled to her lungs.
Darren said: “Alison screamed for me. I ran to find she’d gone blue. By the time the ambulance came she wasn’t responding.”
After the devastating task of telling their children, Ellise, now 14, and Christopher, 12, Darren had to plan her funeral – at the church where they married nine years earlier.
He t hen spent months researching DVT.
He said: “I couldn’t sleep so I’d sit on the internet for hours.”
Convinced the tragedy could have been prevented, he spent years fighting for justice.
In a letter to Darren, John Adler, University Hospitals of Leicester chief exec, expressed his “sincere apologies” for her death. He said: “It’s clear Alison died as a result of failings in the care provided to her.”
Darren said: “We have to move forward but we’ll never forget Alison.”