‘It was horrific’: Women given saline instead of fentanyl, US lawsuit says

When a couple decides to try to have a child by in vitro fertilisation, it’s often accompanied by anticipation, anxiety and worry about whether the egg and sperm will unite and produce a healthy baby.

So when the procedure to retrieve eggs from a woman’s ovary turns out to be physically painful, it can create long-term emotional pain as well, according to a lawsuit and two women who underwent the procedure at the Yale University Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility Clinic.

They are among dozens of women and spouses who are suing Yale University, claiming the staff at the clinic should have known that, instead of receiving fentanyl to relieve pain during the procedure, they instead were being injected with saline — salt water.

“The result was that dozens, perhaps hundreds, of women underwent the most painful fertility surgeries and procedures offered at the REI Clinic with little or no analgesia,” the lawsuit states.

Angela Cortese, 33, of Vernon, who first had her eggs retrieved on Dec. 3, 2019, said the pain was “excruciating” as a nurse wiped tears from her eyes and Cortese tried “not to flinch every time they’re using this giant needle to retrieve the follicles.”

“I want to say it was probably around 45 minutes that I was very much aware of what exactly was happening and feeling every pinch and prod,” she said. “And it doesn’t feel like somebody’s just pinching you. It feels like somebody’s stabbing you through your vagina. It was horrific.”

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Source: ctpost, 31 May 2022