'They destroyed his life': 10-month-old boy's leg amputated after doc's mistake left him 'white and cold'
MSIDA, MALTA: A Melbourne family claims a medical team's critical error in Malta led to their little boy's leg having to be amputated below the knee, turning their Mediterranean vacation into a nightmare. The battle for little Zayn Seguna began in the Maltese town of Msida in November 2022, when the infant, then just seven months old, was taken to Mater Dei Hospital for treatment of bronchiolitis.
Zayn's mother, Joanne Seguna, claimed she was informed by medical staff that an artery was injured when a central line was placed during Zayn's treatment, preventing blood flow and subsequently causing severe muscle and tissue damage. "They hit an artery which they realised straight away because his leg went pale, cold, changed colour straight away," she told 7News. "They pulled the line out and gave him Heparin which is a blood thinner...because a blood clot formed," said Joanne.
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Little Zayn Seguna's horrific ordeal
According to Joanne, her son's condition worsened and he stayed in the hospital for a few more days. "On day four they told me they don’t have a kid’s vascular surgeon and said he’s going to have to go to the United Kingdom to have it looked at and repaired," Joanne said. "If they told me it needed surgery and they didn’t have a surgeon I would have fought harder."
The family was airlifted abroad the next day for emergency surgery. Within hours, Zayn underwent surgery at London's Great Ormond Street Hospital to restore blood flow. According to Joanne, at this point doctors had hoped to see improvements in Zayn's leg, but given the severity of the muscle and tissue damage, they concluded that the lower portion would have to be amputated.
Maltese doctors 'destroyed his life'
"It breaks my heart...I feel like they (Maltese doctors) destroyed his life," she said. "The (UK) surgeon said it should have been looked at within hours (but) it (had) been days." The infant should've been transported immediately to another hospital so that the baby's artery could've been repaired. The family, who are now back in Australia, have written to the hospital in Msida to complain about the alleged negligence of the doctors who failed to inform them.
Despite the fact that her child had lost a leg, Joanne claimed he was still developing well and had only recently learned to crawl. "I just hope when he grows up, he’ll be alright. I used to take photos of his feet, and I’ll treasure those photos forever. I’m just grateful he’s here. I want him to grow up doing anything he wants."