LASUTH Speaks On Harvesting of 12-Year-Old’s Intestine During Treatment

The management of the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), Ikeja, has dismissed all allegations that it was culpable in the case of a 12-year-old boy’s missing intestines.

This comes after the mother of the boy, Deborah Abiodun, said she was thrown into confusion when surgeons at LASUTH informed her that her son Adebola Akin-Bright’s small intestines were missing after a corrective surgery was performed on him on July 14, 2023.

She added that her son was referred to LASUTH from a private hospital, Obitoks Medical Centre, located at Ile-epo in the Alimosho Local Government Area of Lagos State on June 17, after complications from surgery to correct intestinal obstruction.

However, on Saturday, September 2, the management of LASUTH, via the microblogging platform, X formerly known as Twitter, came out to state that they did not wilfully remove any organ or structure from Abiodun’s body while performing the corrective surgery.

The management stressed that the hospital is equipped with state-of-the-art facilities, and highly knowledgeable, skilled and professional medical consultants who would never make such medical errors.

The statement reads: “Once again, the hospital management needs to clarify issues on the insinuations being made by a mother in a viral video that the alleged loss of her son’s intestines after surgery is a matter between a private hospital and LASUTH. Our hospital is an excellent tertiary institution with highly knowledgeable and skilled medical consultants.

“We are also equipped with state-of-the-art facilities. The patient in question was referred to our hospital after having two surgeries carried out in a private hospital.”

The management also noted that besides the surgery being carried out by an experienced paediatric surgeon and supported by her team of professionals, video clips of the surgery were available for further clarification and avoidance of doubts.

The statement further reads, “He required extensive optimisation in our facility before a corrective surgery could be carried out. At the surgery, which was carried out by an experienced pediatric surgeon and her team certain strange findings were discovered. There is a video clip of these intraoperative findings. The mother was informed about these findings but she appeared to be in denial.

“The hospital is in possession of a comprehensive report of the findings by a high-powered panel that it quickly set up to look into all ramifications of this case.

“Clearly, our hospital carried out a corrective surgery and did not wilfully remove any organ or structure. We empathise with the family of the patient. We believe that financial assistance from any quarters will be in order but we do not think that a blackmail of the state government via social media is the best approach.

“The hospital management is cooperating with the state agency which is already investigating this rather unfortunate case.”