Viviana De La O, who will be 2 in May, banged a plastic box on the table in a Camino Real Hotel conference room signaling her lack of interest in adult conversation.

The table and the box, her parents said, were probably a blur to the toddler who is at the center of a lawsuit announced Thursday that was filed in a state district court against an El Paso ophthalmologist accused of failing to properly diagnose and treat Viviana's condition, thus leading to her vision problems.

The child is afflicted with "retinopathy of prematurity," said William B. Curtis, an attorney representing the family that alleges the "gross negligence" of Dr. Jorge Fabio Llamas-Soforo resulted in blindness in her right eye and severe impairment of sight in her left eye.

Viviana's present condition is untreatable, Curtis said during a news conference at the hotel.

"If treated (early), the vast majority of children end up with no vision deficit," he said.

Llamas-Soforo, and the El Paso Eye Care Center where he works, also are named in two similar lawsuits filed in Dallas, said Curtis, who added that the Dallas law firm was examining at least four other cases that might involve the eye doctor's alleged negligence. Of the cases filed in Dallas against Llamas-Soforo, one names Las Palmas Medical Center and the other Providence Memorial Hospital, which also are accused of negligence, attorneys said.

"We take this very seriously," said Terri Wyatt, administrative director for marketing andcommunications for HCA, which operates Las Palmas. "The care of our patients is always in the forefront of our decision making process."

Calls seeking comment from Llamas-Soforo and Providence weren't returned Thursday.

All seven children who suffer from various levels of blindness, ranging from total loss of sight in both eyes to impairment that qualifies as "legally blind" were born prematurely and were afflicted with retinopathy of prematurity, Curtis said. Llamas-Soforo had "no specialized pediatric training," and failed to properly diagnose and treat the condition, attorneys said.

"This is medical malpractice and gross negligence that, in my opinion, is borderline criminal because it continued time after time, child after child," said Domingo A. Garcia, co-counsel on the case.

"The hospitals and doctors are putting profits over patients," he said. "Cutting corners for profit cost these babies their eyesight."

Although the De La O lawsuit seeks unspecified actual and punitive damages, the state of Texas has a cap of $250,000 on damages not related to specific medical costs, lost wages or other economic damages, Curtis said. Because there is no treatment for Viviana's condition, he said, the damages would be capped at that value unless the law is changed.

The problem is caused, Curtis said, when blood vessels grow too quickly behind the retina, detaching it. A laser treatment can be used to burn away some of the blood vessels, he said, but it must be done during a small window of time before permanent damage results.

Viviana is being evaluated to determine whether she will be able to read or will have to learn Braille, a system of reading and writing using raised dots, her parents said.

"We filed (the lawsuit) because we think he (Llamas-Soforo) shouldn't be screening any more babies, and we don't want anyone else to go through the same thing," said Elizabeth De La O. "I just urge parents if they are going to a doctor to get a second opinion."

Jesus De La O added: "And I want to tell them not to wait until it's too late. Do it as soon as possible."

Source: elpasotimes.com