East Kent NHS criticised over new mother herpes deaths

A coroner has criticised an NHS trust for the deaths of two new mothers from herpes in 2018 and said antiviral drugs should have been given sooner.

Kim Sampson, 29, and Samantha Mulcahy, 32, died six weeks apart after having Caesarean sections in hospitals run by East Kent Hospitals Trust.

A coroner found that a surgeon who had operated on both women was unlikely to have been the source of the infection.

She said this was in part because East Kent NHS had never tested him.

The same obstetrician carried out their Caesareans seven weeks apart, the inquest has heard.

Mid Kent and Medway coroner, Catherine Wood told the inquest at Kent County Hall: "There is no evidence at all... that one member of the team infected both mothers."

However, she noted that the doctor and another member of the team who treated both mothers were never tested for the virus.

Ms Sampson's baby boy was delivered at the Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother Hospital in Margate in May 2018.

In July of that year, first-time mother Mrs Mulcahy died from an infection caused by the same virus at the William Harvey Hospital in Ashford.

Ms Woods criticised the medical teams who treated Ms Sampson for not starting her on antiviral drugs earlier, when it became clear her condition was not responding to antibiotics.

"Treatment with acyclovir should at least have been considered by 16 May. The earlier the treatment is given, the better the outcome."

When Ms Mulcahy became ill six weeks later, medical teams should have been aware of Ms Sampson's death and started antiviral treatment earlier, the coroner said.

The inquest has heard how Ms Sampson needed a blood transfusion because of injuries sustained during the operation. After two days, she asked to be discharged with her baby and went home with her mother despite being in a lot of pain.

Her condition deteriorated and she was readmitted to the maternity ward a few days later. Doctors thought she was suffering from bacterial sepsis, a potentially very serious condition, and treated her with antibiotics.

She was transferred to King's College Hospital in south London but her condition did not improve and she died on 22 May.

Ms Mulcahy had her baby by Caesarean section on 26 June and developed a fever the following day - she was given antibiotics but did not improve.

Doctors again thought she was suffering from sepsis and on 30 June she was transferred to intensive care, but medical teams were unable to save her and she died on the morning of 4 July.

In her conclusion, the coroner said deaths from herpes were incredibly rare. The virus, HSV-1 or herpes simplex is a common infection that can cause sores around the mouth or genitals, but if contracted after giving birth, it is "a potentially fatal disease" Ms Woods said.

She said she would be writing to the Royal College of Obstetrics and Gynaecology to highlight the dangers of the condition in new mothers.

In March, the coroner accepted an application from the NHS trust to give anonymity to the surgeon common to both cases.

The surgeon who operated on both women, who could not be named for legal reasons, previously told the hearing his hands were fully scrubbed, double gloved and he was wearing a mask during both procedures. He also said he had no lesions and was not infected but had not been tested for the virus.