Monday, April 18, 2016

"Wrong sperm case" in Canada

In Canada, a case of wrongful birth was issued recently.


The lawsuit claims that she was sold a sperm for artificial insemination which belonged to a genius person, but he was actually schizophrenic. The sperm was delivered to several mothers. A total of 36 children has been born from his sperm. Three children of the lawsuits have not shown any symptoms of mental disorders yet.

The Guardian: Sperm bank sued as case of mentally ill donor's history unfolds

This litigation has not been determined. Canadian courts denied the claim in similar cases.

According to the plaintiff, the donor of sperm was explained as a drummer with a Ph.D. degree and can speak five languages. However, when the donor mistakenly sent an email to the plaintiff, his lies were revealed. He has schizophrenia and narcissistic personality disorder. His personal history may be a fantasy created from his grandiose delusion.

The lawyer of Xytex Corp and Outreach Health in Canada, the dealer of the sperm, denied any misconduct around this issue. The lawsuit will focus if Xytex sold sperm with knowing the fact about the donor. Otherwise, it is possible that the allegation itself is incorrect.

If the donor has some mental illnesses and tries to deceive the company, can we penetrate his lie? There are some methods to diagnose malingering in clinical psychiatry. Psychiatrists are seldom doubtful about the saying of the client. However, in this case, we should be aware of the possibility that the donor is pretending his status for a better deal.

If the plaintiff's claim is true, it seems easy for the company to have revealed that the donor was in delusion. Some medical check including an intelligence test, and referring to some industries will easily tell the truth. If the company skipped the process, it deserves to be criticized.

By the way, some people may deem this case as discrimination against people with mental disorders. I do not think so. Schizophrenia is a disease with hereditary character. People who have been proven with hereditary diseases are inappropriate for a donor. It is same as diabetes, Huntington's disease, and other hereditary diseases. It is impossible to eliminate any possibility of diseases. Nonetheless, the risk should be minimized.

On the other hand, the desire of mothers for better genes is to be discussed. It is natural for a mother to want their children to be great. But it is unsure which genes will make us healthy and genius. It is not certain that a gifted person will be happy in the later life. Artificial insemination from a stranger has still some challenges.

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