A Victorian couple who wanted a girl are suing an IVF clinic after the woman gave birth to a boy with haemophilia.
Fiona and Paul Amos asked Melbourne IVF to ensure that they only had a female child so Mrs Amos would not pass on the genetic blood condition.
She gave birth to son Jesse, who has haemophilia, on June 1, 2005.
The genetic disorder will impair the ability of Jesse's blood to clot.
In a statement of claim lodged with the Victorian Supreme Court, the couple from St Arnaud, in northern Victoria, are suing Melbourne IVF and its obstetrician and gynecologist Dr David Wilkinson.
They also are suing Ballarat Health Services and Bendigo Radiology.
Mrs Amos underwent treatment at Melbourne IVF between November 2003 and late January 2004.
In the statement of claim, the couple argue the clinic breached its duty of care by failing to advise that pre-implantation genetic diagnosis was not 100 per cent accurate.
They also allege Melbourne IVF failed to advise them that the analysis could lead to the wrong gender of an embryo being diagnosed.
It is further alleged the IVF centre inaccurately reported the embryo contained two chromosomes and failed to report that the embryo contained only one X chromosome.
The couple allege Ballarat Health Services failed to have an ultrasound performed that would have confirmed the child was not female.
It also is alleged Bendigo Radiology failed to confirm the child was male.
They are suing for psychiatric injury including depression, shock and anxiety.
In a statement of defence, Melbourne IVF said the couple failed to refrain from having unprotected sex during their IVF treatment.
It also alleged the couple failed to have a repeat ultrasound after one was carried out in January, 2005, and did not have an amniocentesis, a procedure which could have determined genetic abnormalities.
The matter will return to a later date.
