Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1313950
5 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 2 DECEMBER 2020 NEWS 'Ectopic pregnancies need to be treated urgently' CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 The woman had been told her treatment had to be approved by a board. The Health Ministry react- ed to the story, insisting that a request form for methotrexate is signed by the consultant and countersigned by the chairman of the Department of Obstet- rics and Gynaecology, a pro- cedure that usually took "a few hours". The ministry said no board oversees the process. But gynaecologist Mark Sant confirmed with MaltaToday that from information he had sourced from a pharmacy, doc- tors would need to send an ex- ceptional treatment form to the Directorate for Pharmaceutical Affairs by email, and the board there would approve the appli- cation and give the go ahead to the pharmacist to prepare the medication. Sant said he was told that the board worked until 2:30pm and that if paper work did not arrive to them by then, they would ap- prove it the next day. An ectopic pregnancy is life-threatening for the woman and methotrexate is adminis- tered to end the pregnancy and avoid further complications. The woman that flagged the issue lamented that her fertili- ty and her life were "needless- ly put at risk" because of pro- cedural delays stemming from Malta's umbrella ban on abor- tion. She said that because of the delay in treatment the first dose did not work, and she had to be re-admitted to hospital for an- other which eventually worked. The blanket ban on abortion means that doctors cannot immediately administer treat- ment that ends the pregnancy. The NGO Doctors for Choice said this was a consequence of Malta's "pro-life abortion ban." The NGO said that ec- topic pregnancies needed to be treated urgently, and any delay in treatment could result in an increased risk of rupture which may cost the woman her life. Meanwhile, anti-abortion group Doctors for Life yester- day accused the pro-choice group of misinformation by trying to capitalise on a pa- tient experience to "advance an agenda". Doctors for Life said ectopic pregnancies can be fatal and have always been treated se- riously by the medical profes- sionals at Mater Dei Hospital. "Proof of the excellent track record of our hospital is the fact that no pregnant mother has lost her life in the last 10 years. This is the result of a high level of professionalism as well as ro- bust practices that always seek to protect the lives of mothers," the group said, endorsing the ministry's reply. What is an ectopic pregnancy? An ectopic pregnancy is when a fertilised egg im- plants itself outside of the womb, usually in one of the fallopian tubes. The fallopian tubes connect the ovaries to the womb. If an egg implants in them, it won't develop into a baby and the woman's health may be at risk if the pregnancy continues. An ectopic pregnancy is life-threat- ening for the woman. It's not possible to save the pregnancy and treat- ment usually involves the removal of the fertilised egg using medicine or an operation. Mark Sant