Court allows 29-year-old with brain fever terminate pregnancy

Hearing the plea moved by the woman’s husband, S Sachin Narayan, seeking the court’s permission as the pregnancy has crossed the 20-week norm, Justice K Ravichandrabaabu directed the Medical Pregnancy Termination Committee, Coimbatore Medical College and Hospital, to examine the patient. If it is satisfied that the pregnancy has to be terminated based on the opinion given by the consultant neurologist, the hospital where she is admitted should terminate it.

Her husband submitted that she has an auto-immune encephalitis (severe brain fever), which is a serious and life-threatening condition, and has to be given an injection that would be harmful to the unborn child.

Delaying this injection would cause a permanent neurological injury that could leave her in a persistent vegetative state. The consultant neurologist of the Royal Care Super Specialty Hospital and the team of doctors of the hospital were of the opinion that the continuance of the pregnancy would involve a risk to the life of his wife, while the treatment is given to save her would endanger the unborn child, he said.

He also submitted that his wife had already given birth to a male baby in 2016 and this is her second pregnancy.