Ophthalmologist leaves a 14-month-old baby blind by mistake

The parents of a 14-month-old baby filed a suit for medical malpractice against a doctor in Sonora who left their child blind for life.

Armando Espinoza Cisneros, an ophthalmologist who worked for the High Specialty Medical Unit of the Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS) in Ciudad Obregón, removed the healthy right eye of Jonathan Valdez Fernando Anaya instead of his left eye, where the baby has a tumor.

Marlene Quijano Ayala, mother of the child, said that the surgery was performed on June 26.

The doctor tried to justify his mistake arguing that the child has advanced cancer that affects both eyes and added that he still has visibility in his left eye. However, the mother says that is not true because all the studies show that the eye is calcified and has infiltrations in the optic nerve.

The IMSS delegation in Sonora said that the ophthalmologist was suspended after he was accused at the Attorney General's Office (PGR) by the child's parents.

The case was also referred to the National Human Rights Commission (CNDH).