Doctor guilty of misconduct

Dr Klentzeris had worked at the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff

A leading fertility doctor has been found guilty of serious professional misconduct by the General Medical Council (GMC) for falsifying research.

Consultant gynaecologist Dr Loukas Klentzeris, 48, had admitted giving false information in a paper on IVF (in-vitro fertilisation).

He was suspended as head of Cardiff Assisted Reproduction Unit last year.

But the GMC's professional conduct committee decided to conclude Dr Klentzeris' case with a reprimand.

The committee said it had not been proven that he acted dishonestly.

At the London hearing, chairman Dr Roger Ferguson told Dr Klentzeris he had acted unethically when he submitted his paper to the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology.

The GMC was told he had taken just two nights to write the falsified work.

He has let down not just himself but the medical profession at large David Balcombe, Dr Klentzeris' counsel

"You have accepted that your behaviour in relation to the abstract was likely to undermine confidence in medical research and was likely to bring the medical profession into disrepute," said Dr Ferguson.

However, he said the committee was satisfied it was "a single episode in an otherwise successful career".

"The committee are fully satisfied that you recognise the seriousness of your actions and have noted your genuine remorse and regret," he added.

In the paper presented in April 2002, Dr Klentzeris, who had been based at the University Hospital of Wales, Cardiff, had claimed 38 women in a study had taken blood tests, when in fact none of them had.

David Balcombe, Dr Klentzeris' counsel, told the GMC hearing that his client had been under extreme stress.

"We say incontrovertibly he was ill at the time," he said. "There cannot be any doubt at all about the extent of Dr Klentzeris' regret.

"He has let down not just himself but the medical profession at large."

'Significant impact'

On Monday, Dr Klentzeris, who now lives and works in Athens, said he and his family were devastated by the case.

He also said he faced financial ruin and feared his career would never recover.

The hearing was held at the GMC in London

During the hearing, Dr Klentzeris said marital problems and family illnesses had caused him stress.

Lynn Griffin, counsel for the GMC, said he had breached the public's trust.

"He may not have done so knowingly but a breach it was nonetheless," he said.

"It was behaviour that was misleading, unethical and not in accordance with best practice and will have a significant impact on the confidence that the public may place in medicine."

Dr Klentzeris, who was originally from Greece, went to work in England in 1984 and has won several awards for his research work.