[Training, practice and the increasing dominance of legal aspects in ultrasound in obstetrics and gynecology in Austria].
During the past few years, the Austrian Supreme Court has hanged down two landmark rulings concerning the use of ultrasound in obstetrics and gynecology. After a woman had died of ovarian carcinoma, her family sued the doctor for not having diagnosed the carcinoma by transvaginal ultrasound she had performed 8 months before the tumor was diagnosed. The plaintiffs won the case at the supreme court level, this making Austria the first country with implicit court-ordered ovarian cancer screening. A wrongful life case concerning a baby that had been born with bone deformities was also decided in favor of the plaintiffs, declaring ultrasound in pregnancy to be an instrument intended to help women decide whether or not to have an abortion. The impact of these two cases on the teaching and clinical application of ultrasound in obstetrics and gynecology in Austria is discussed.
Brezinka
Christoph
C
Universitätsklinik fur Frauenheilkunde, Innsbruck, Osterreich. christoph.brezinka@uibk.ac.at
D001317:Austria; D000013:Congenital Abnormalities / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D003479:Curriculum; D004502:Education, Medical, Continuing; D019160:Endosonography; D005260:Female; D006176:Gynecology / Q000193:education*; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008318:Malpractice / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D009774:Obstetrics / Q000193:education*; D010051:Ovarian Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D011247:Pregnancy; D011786:Quality Control; D016216:Ultrasonography, Prenatal; D015974:Wrongful Life