Parents call for DVT improvements

Katie McPherson was 23 years old when she died from DVT

A couple whose daughter died after doctors failed to diagnose deep vein thrombosis have called for action to improve detection of the condition

Gordon and Jane McPherson's daughter Katie died in 2003 at the age of 23.

The student, from Langbank, in Renfrewshire, attended two hospitals, but doctors failed to diagnose DVT.

The Scottish Parliament's petitions committee has now agreed to take the matter up with government ministers, as well as the health service.

Mr MacPherson told the committee that now, almost five years after her death, health authorities still did not have common guidelines on how to spot the condition and treat it.

As a family we've done as much as we can and it's time for action Jane McPherson

"We feel it is essential all health boards work to the same guidelines," he said.

The couple have called on ministers to bring in mandatory assessments for health boards for the diagnosis of DVT, as well as a screening programme for newborn babies to test them for the gene which increases susceptibility to DVT.

Mr MacPherson also said people needed to be better informed about the signs and symptoms of the condition, which he claimed could be responsible for up to 3,000 deaths a year in Scotland.

Mrs MacPherson said: "As a family we've done as much as we can and it's time for action."

Katie McPherson died nine days after complaining of pains in a leg.

She had attended Edinburgh Royal Infirmary but tested negative for DVT and was sent home with painkillers.

A visit to her GP and then the Royal Alexandria Hospital in Paisley again failed to diagnose the condition.