A 'unique set of circumstances' led to the death of a baby boy just days after he was born, an inquest has heard.

George Dosanjh died at the Royal Stoke University Hospital on December 3, 2022, after he had been delivered by emergency cesarean section amid a number of medical issues.

George's family, from Stafford, had raised a number of questions about his treatment and the decisions taken by medics during mum Charlotte Hird's difficult labour.

But an expert witness told the inquest into George's death that the care received by George and Charlotte had been in line with standard procedure.

Mustafa Sadiq, an experienced consultant at Wirral University Hospital, said that an unusual combination of factors had made it a very complex delivery.

Charlotte had gone into labour early at 34 weeks, and staff decided to carry out an emergency c-section after George's heart rate started to drop.

At some point George had become partially separated from the placenta, and during the c-section an acute placental abruption took place – meaning George was being starved of oxygen.

While medics knew they had to deliver George as quickly as possible, an impacted fetal head – where the baby's head becomes lodged in the mother's pelvis – made this difficult.

George was eventually extracted following an further incision and an unusual reverse breech manoeuvre. He was taken to the neonatal intensive care unit but sadly died just three days later, due to multiple organ failure and hypoxic-ischaemic encephalopathy.

Mr Sadiq was asked about various decisions taken by staff, including the temporary withdrawal of magnesium sulphate – which is used to reduce the risk of neurological problems – and the placement of the initial incision. He said that medics had taken reasonable decisions throughout the emergency.

Mr Sadiq said: "In this case there was a fairly unique set of circumstances. If you were to ask 10 obstetricians if they had seen a situation like this during their careers, only two or three would say yes.

"This was a very rare situation. Given the experience of the team, I believe they did the right thing."

But Mr Sadiq said staff could have taken more samples during the procedures. While this would not have changed the outcome, it would have made it easier to subsequently understand the timing of the placental abruption.

Dr Victoria Allouni, a consultant in maternal medicine at the University Hospitals of North Midlands, confirmed that the actions taken by staff had been in line with their training.

She told the inquest that training had been refreshed following the incident. Dr Allouni said: "These things were already in the training, but there is more emphasis now. Most staff will never experience circumstances like these, but it's important for the small percentage who will."

"Following the conclusion of the evidence at the inquest, Charlotte paid tribute to her son. She said: "You were perfect in every way possible. There isn't a day that goes by when we aren't thinking about you."

Coroner Fiona Gingell will deliver her conclusion on Wednesday.