Derry hospital managers have begun an urgent inquiry to find out why three women who underwent surgery for sterilisation have become pregnant. Officials at Altnagelvin Hospital have also admitted that 44 other women also sterilised by laparoscopy have been told they are also "potentially at risk of pregnancy".
British hospitals have used the laparoscopy operation for 15 years, which has an expected failure rate of one in every 500 cases. One of the three mothers-to-be, who wished to remain anonymous, said: "I'm angry. I'm very angry. I had doubts about undergoing the operation in the first place. It was a very difficult decision for me to make but once I had taken the decision to be sterilised, the last thing I expected . . . was to become pregnant."
The hospital's chief executive, Ms Stella Burnside, admitted in a statement that the hospital had an incidence higher than expected of failure of sterilisation. "A review of this unusual incidence is currently under way," her statement said.
"The procedure for this treatment is well tried, and this occurrence is extremely unusual. Nevertheless, we have launched an urgent inquiry and ensured that each affected person is being offered specific advice, investigation and, where necessary, further treatment. We know that this is confined to a limited number of patients who underwent this procedure," the statement added.