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PETBioNewsNews'Octomum' doctor could still be struck off

BioNews

'Octomum' doctor could still be struck off

Published 4 October 2012 posted in News and appears in BioNews 595

Author

MacKenna Roberts

Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.
CC0 1.0
Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.

'Octomum' fertility doctor, Dr Michael Kamrava, could still be struck off despite a judge's recommendation to the contrary, according to a decision made by the Medical Board of California, the state's medical licensing body....

'Octomum' fertility doctor, Dr Michael Kamrava, could still be struck off despite a judge's recommendation to the contrary, according to a decision made by the Medical Board of California, the state's medical licensing body.

The board refused to exclude revoking Dr Kamrava's medical licence as a possible sanction, rejecting recommendations made last month that he should instead be placed on probation. A licensing panel is now expected to deliberate later this year on the Beverly Hills fertility doctor's fate.

At a previous hearing, Administrative Law Judge Daniel Juarez did not find 'an absence of qualification, ability or fitness'. He noted that Dr Kamrava successfully defended the majority of the allegations and was unlikely to repeat his mistakes given the intense public scrutiny, not withstanding 'inconsistency' in his testimony about his willingness to adhere to fertility guidelines in future. But the medical board disagreed that 'the public would be adequately protected' by a five-year supervised probation, including an ethics course.

Dr Kamrava had testified that when providing IVF to Ms Nadya Suleman he was 'apprehensive' but had transferred 12 embryos at her fully informed insistence, resulting in octuplets born nine-weeks premature. Previously he maintained he did nothing improper but admitted in the hearing that he had made a mistake.

Defence attorney Henry Fenton argued that Dr Kamrava simply followed his patient's informed wishes to establish a large family. 'The guidelines don't say people can only have one or two babies... that's her prerogative', he said. 'It's not the doctor that's going to decide how many children this lady is going to have'.

But State Deputy Attorney General Judith Alvarado rebutted that Dr Kamrava knew 'that a 12-embryo transfer was unsafe and below the standard of care' and acted like a 'cowboy'.

Judge Juarez found Dr Kamrava to be grossly negligent in transferring an excessive number of embryos to Ms Suleman and negligence in two other cases. One case involved a 48-year-old who suffered complications after a seven-embryo transfer led to a pregnancy with quadruplets and the six-week premature birth of triplets, one of whom has severe developmental delays.

The American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) recommends that women aged 35 or younger should receive no more than two embryos during one cycle of IVF and up to five embryos for women over 40. It expelled Dr Michael Kamrava in 2009 during the 'octomum' controversy, but does not have the authority to review medical licences. US guidelines are not legally binding but dictate good medical practice and reflect expert consensus on treatment standards and medical knowledge.

A panel of the Medical Board of California is next scheduled to meet in May when it is expected to consider the case further.

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Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.
CC0 1.0
Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.
News
12 November 2012 • 2 minutes read

'Octomum' doctor's medical licence revoked

by Kyrillos Georgiadis

The US fertility doctor who helped 'octomum' Nadya Suleman give birth to a total of 14 children through repeated IVF treatments, has had his licence revoked by the Medical Board of California....

Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.
CC0 1.0
Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.
News
28 January 2011 • 1 minute read

Judge says 'octomum' doctor should be allowed to see patients

by Kyrillos Georgiadis

A US judge has recommended that Dr Michael Kamrava, a Beverly Hills fertility doctor responsible for providing IVF to 'Octomum' Ms Nadya Suleman, should be allowed to continue practising as a doctor....

Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.
CC0 1.0
Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.
News
22 October 2010 • 1 minute read

'Octomum' doctor implanted 12 embryos

by Julianna Photopoulos

US fertility doctor Dr Michael Kamrava implanted a total of 12 embryos into 'Octomum' Nadya Suleman, a licensing hearing is told....

Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.
CC0 1.0
Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.
News
16 July 2010 • 1 minute read

'Octomum' doctor faces fresh accusations

by Louise Mallon

The fertility doctor who helped 'Octomum' Nayda Suleman conceive octuplets transferred seven embryos to another woman, according to the Medical Board of California...

Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.
CC0 1.0
Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.
News
11 January 2010 • 2 minutes read

Medical board accuses 'octomum' doctor of negligence

by Nisha Satkunarajah

A disciplinary complaint has been filed by the California State Medical Board against Dr Micheal Kamrava, the fertility doctor who controversially assisted Nadya Suleman to give birth to octuplets in January 2009. Barbara Johnston, the executive director of the board, filed the complaint, which accuses Dr Kamrava of negligence and violation of professional guidelines. No date has yet been set for the hearing which could potential result in Dr Kamrava's licence being revoked or suspended....

PET BioNews
Reviews
15 November 2009 • 3 minutes read

TV Review: Octomum: Me and my 14 kids

by Jenny Dunlop

Channel 4, 12 November 2009...

Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.
CC0 1.0
Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.
News
20 October 2009 • 2 minutes read

'Octomum's' IVF doctor expelled from ASRM

by Dr Antony Starza-Allen

The US fertility doctor responsible for transplanting six embryos into a woman who gave birth to octuplets last January has been struck off by the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) - although he is still able to practice as membership of the professional society is only voluntary....

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