A distraught mum has revealed her newborn has endured 13 weeks of agony after medics allegedly overlooked symptoms of a distressing ailment. Demi-Leigh Hughes, who welcomed her daughter Isabella prematurely at William Harvey Hospital in Ashfield, Kent on August 5, 2024, shared that the infant had been “crying in pain” for over three months before receiving a diagnosis of anterior anus—a rare condition where the anus is abnormally positioned at the front of the perineum.
The full-time mother from Hersden, Kent, expressed her frustration, saying: “I’ve got a child of 13 weeks who’s been crying non-stop, who is dependent on laxatives in order to poo because of something that could have been picked up and should have been picked up weeks ago.”
She continued with dismay, “For 13 weeks we’ve had this problem of her screaming and screaming and we’ve just had to have more and more medication.” Highlighting the severity of the treatment, she added, “She’s on laxatives that a 12-year-old child should be on.”
Looking ahead to the challenges her daughter faces, Demi stated, “Now, she’s going to need a major operation to try and reposition her bowel – she might need a stoma bag.”
Despite the timing of the diagnosis, she lamented, “She would have had these problems no matter when the problem was noticed.”
However, she couldn’t help but feel that an earlier intervention could have spared Isabella some suffering: “But if it had been spotted sooner – like it should have been – then she could have started treatment and wouldn’t have had to go through all this pain.”
Recalling the birth of Isabella, who arrived five weeks early, Demi also mentioned her previous trepidations about delivering at the same hospital due to past experiences with her first child, Elijah, who is 14 months old. Demi lashed out: “When she had her newborn (medical) check it should have been noticed then.”
She also mentioned, “It’s blatantly obvious – every medical professional I have spoken to since has stated this.”
Expressing her potential move towards legal action, she added: “If they’ve missed this with my child, how many more children are they actually missing things with? ” Demi insisted that neonatal doctors need greater scrutiny and training, saying, “Neonatal doctors need to pay more attention and they clearly need more training in what to look for.”
She believed that proper attention could prevent the kind of distress she suffered for 13 weeks. A representative from East Kent University Hospitals Trust overseeing the William Harvey commented: “We are sorry to hear of Ms Hughes’ distress and would invite her to contact our Patient Advice and Liaison Service.”
The spokesperson acknowledged the dedicated training of practitioners but noted that identifying a condition like anterior anus isn’t always possible in initial examinations.
