Parents arrested over obese child

6 June 2014 Last updated at 16:24

A couple have been arrested by police on suspicion of cruelty and neglect of their obese child.

A 49-year-old man and a 44-year-old woman, from King's Lynn in Norfolk, were questioned by officers over the child's care and released on bail.

Police said intervention at this level was "very rare" and only occurred where other attempts to protect the child had been unsuccessful.

Continue reading the main story

Almost one in three children in England is overweight or obese by age 11, so it is important to collect objective measurements of how children are growing.

Primary school children in Reception (age 4-5) and Year 6 (age 10-11) have their height and weight measured as part of the government's National Child Measurement Programme.

Parents in most areas will receive a letter with the results for their child, which will indicate if they are underweight, a healthy weight or overweight for their age and height.

This is judged by calculating their body mass index or BMI - their weight (in kg) divided by the square of their height (in metres).

The results are then plotted on a chart and collected by local public health teams.

A spokeswoman added police were working with health and social services.

The Sun reported the couple's 11-year-old son is 5ft 1in (1.5m) and 15 stone, with a body mass index (BMI) of 41.8.

It alleged concerned teachers and doctors prompted intervention by social services and then police.

Police and Norfolk County Council said it would not discuss the "victim" or the circumstances of the case.

'Protection from harm'

The couple were arrested in March on suspicion of child neglect and cruelty under section 1 of the Children's Act 1933.

"When dealing with sensitive issues such as obesity and neglect of children, officers from the force's Child Abuse Investigation Unit work closely with partners, significantly with both health care and social services, to ensure any response to address them are proportionate and necessary," police said.

"Any action taken by any agency will be subject to a joint strategy and will always be taken with the welfare of the child and their protection from harm as paramount."

Norfolk County Council spokeswoman said: "Our priority will always be the health, well-being and safety of Norfolk's children and we will always do all we can to support families to meet their children's needs."

In August 2012, a five-year-old girl from Newport, south Wales, was taken into care after her weight reached 10st 5lbs (66.1kg) - more than three times the weight of a healthy child her age.

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Campaigners criticise care changes

6 June 2014 Last updated at 17:20

Thousands of adults in England could lose access to home care under draft government guidelines, campaigners are warning.

The regulations, which are subject to consultation, set out the care needs someone must have to qualify for council-funded care.

Charities, including Age UK, say the criteria will lead to many people being shut out of the care system.

But Care Minister Norman Lamb says the new system will be fairer.

Continue reading the main story

"Start Quote

From now on the inability to do just one of these fundamental things will not be enough to qualify you for support"

End Quote Caroline Abrahams Alzheimer's UK

The changes, which will be introduced in April 2015, will see all local authorities in England use the same minimum guidelines for determining whether they should provide care.

Councils currently fund care at one of four levels - low, moderate, substantial or critical.

The proposed criteria are similar to the "substantial" category that most councils currently use.

A table published by the Department of Health last year found 130 of the 152 councils who provide care, did so at the substantial level.

Only three councils paid at the higher critical level, and ministers expect about 4,000 extra people living in those areas to become eligible for help, as the rules would be eased.

But in 19 council areas, which currently pay for moderate or low needs, there are fears the amount of care provided will be reduced, because the criteria will become stricter.

'Not good enough'

The Care and Support Alliance said it was concerned the proposals "hardwire in the status quo of highly rationed care rather than create a preventative system that lives up to their big ambitions and keeps people from being isolated and ending up in A&E".

Continue reading the main story

"Start Quote

Our national eligibility criteria will make the system fairer by clearly setting out what level of needs must be met by all local authorities, putting an end to this variation"

End Quote Norman Lamb Care minister

Caroline Abrahams, charity director at Age UK, welcomed a "standardised" system, but said the new regulations were "restrictive" and "not good enough".

Ms Abrahams said: "The regulations are written in such a way that we worry that people with dementia who need help to continue to live at home with dignity could be screened out, together with those who struggle with dressing, or washing, or going to the toilet or preparing food.

"From now on the inability to do just one of these fundamental things will not be enough to qualify you for support and Age UK's concern is that without it, some older people's needs will escalate, undermining their capacity to continue to live at home."

Richard Hawkes, chairman of the Care and Support Alliance - a coalition of 75 organisations representing older and disabled people and their carers, said: "The government has passed up the chance to drive through a genuinely preventative system.

"It has instead hardwired the year-on-year rationing that's seen people squeezed out of the system.

"Without that help, people's lives fall apart. This will also place unbearable pressure on family carers."

Rachael Byrne, executive director of care and support for Home Group, one of the UK's largest providers of social care services, said: "Many people who have relied on care from their local council will find themselves squeezed out. This will place an intolerable strain on an already overstretched NHS.

Care cap

Mr Lamb said: "Until now it's been hard for people who need care and their carers to know if they are eligible for care and support from their council and this has varied depending on where they live.

"Our national eligibility criteria will make the system fairer by clearly setting out what level of needs must be met by all local authorities, putting an end to this variation."

The consultation is open until 15 August and centres on the changes that will come into effect from April 2015.

Changes set to be introduced in 2016 include a cap on personal care costs of £72,000, excluding accommodation, and a new requirement on councils to provide preventative services.

A further consultation on these will take place this autumn.

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Father's plea over baby feed death

6 June 2014 Last updated at 17:45

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Raaid Sakkijha has spoken about the death of his son Yousef from suspected contaminated feed

The father of a nine-day-old baby who died after contracting a bacterial infection from a suspected contaminated hospital feed has said he does not want more children to die.

Yousef Al-Kharboush died on Sunday at St Thomas' Hospital in London.

His father Raaid Hassan Sakkijha said his son had suffered but he hoped other children would be saved.

Officials revealed 21 babies, many premature, are now known to have been infected at a number of hospitals.

Continue reading the main story

"Start Quote

My son has died and I hope he will be able to save other children"

End Quote Raaid Sakkijha

Speaking after a hearing at Southwark Coroner's Court, Mr Sakkijha revealed Yousef, born eight weeks premature, had a twin. The baby's condition is unknown.

The coroner ruled a post-mortem examination would not be performed on Yousef, from London Bridge, central London, following a request from his family.

Mr Sakkijha told the BBC the family had had excellent care from the hospital but there had been an "unlucky incident".

Asked how he felt, he said: "If you have a child, you'll know."

Speaking at a pre-inquest review at Southwark Coroner's Court, Mr Sakkijha, who has two other children, aged 10 and seven, said his child had been "suffering", adding: "My son has died and I hope he will be able to save other children. I hope the other children are getting well.

"I was hoping to hear production of this product would completely stop until this report was out."

Intensive care

Continue reading the main story

"Start Quote

We believe this is an isolated incident and the appropriate immediate action has been taken at ITH Pharma's facility"

End Quote Gerald Heddell Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency

Three further cases were revealed by Public Health England (PHE) on Friday.

PHE said it had been working with neonatal units which had received the feed and looked at other babies' case records to check for signs of infection.

This has led to earlier cases being included in the total.

The babies, who became unwell last week or over the weekend, are responding to antibiotic treatment.

Experts said that, because of the time that has passed since the product expired, there was a "very small" chance of further cases emerging.

What is Bacillus cereus?

• A type of bacterium that produces toxins that cause two types of illness
• The most common form causes nausea and vomiting
• The symptoms may start one to six hours after eating contaminated food
• It is commonly found in dust, soil and vegetation and is likely to be on most surfaces
• The poison is not passed from one person to another and symptoms do not usually last longer than a day
• Less common is an illness which causes fever and diarrhoea
• These symptoms, which may be serious, usually start six to 24 hours after eating and can last for one or two days

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) said it had inspected the premises of ITH Pharma, the company that manufactured the feed.

Gerald Heddell, the MHRA's director of inspection, enforcement and standards, said: "Based on the information we currently have, we believe this is an isolated incident and the appropriate immediate action has been taken at ITH Pharma's facility to avoid a reoccurrence.

"Therefore we are allowing this critical product to be supplied to patients while our investigation proceeds."

He added: "At this stage we believe the facility is operating in accordance with Good Manufacturing Practice guidelines but further inspections will be made as part of our ongoing investigation."

On Thursday, the manufacturer of the feed, ITH Pharma, said it was "saddened" by what had happened and was cooperating fully with the investigation.

It had been suggested that one of the raw ingredients in the feed could have been the source of the contamination.

However the MHRA said on the evidence available that did not appear to be the case.

Liquid feed

The affected babies are being cared for at 10 hospitals in England.

All the infected babies were being fed a liquid mixture of nutrients directly into their bloodstream, which happens when newborns are unable to eat on their own.

Public Health England said the babies developed septicaemia or blood poisoning from the Bacillus cereus bacterium, which has been "strongly linked" to an intravenous fluid supplied by ITH Pharma.

They were being cared for in neonatal intensive care units and the surviving infants are said to be responding to antibiotic treatment.

The contaminated batches of feed have since been withdrawn, although as they expired on Monday none should have been used since then.

A total of 162 units of the feed were sent out from the contaminated batches to more than 20 hospitals. It is possible other cases will emerge as tests are carried out.

The cases have been reported at:

• Chelsea and Westminster NHS Trust (four confirmed, one possible)
• Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust (three confirmed)
• The Whittington Hospital (one confirmed)
• Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust (three confirmed)
• CUH Addenbrookes (Cambridge University Hospitals) (two confirmed, one possible)
• Luton and Dunstable University Hospital (two confirmed)
• Peterborough City Hospital (one confirmed)
• Southend University Hospital (one probable)
• Stoke Mandeville Hospital (one probable)
• Basildon University Hospital (one possible)

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Hospital feed death baby is named

6 June 2014 Last updated at 10:32

A nine-day old baby who died after contracting a bacterial infection from suspected contaminated hospital feed has been named as Yousef Al-Kharboush.

His parents are set to meet the coroner, hospital chiefs and representatives from ITH Pharma, which supplied the feed, later on Friday.

They will discuss whether a post-mortem into the death of Yousef, from London Bridge, is needed.

Eighteen babies, many premature, have shown signs of blood poisoning.

The cases are spread across nine hospitals in England.

Public Health England and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) are investigating the outbreaks.

All the infected babies were being fed a liquid mixture of nutrients directly into their bloodstream, which happens when newborns are unable to eat on their own.

Public Health England said the babies developed septicaemia or blood poisoning from the Bacillus cereus bacterium, which has been "strongly linked" to an intravenous fluid supplied by ITH Pharma.

They were being cared for in neonatal intensive care units and the surviving infants are said to be responding to antibiotic treatment.

'Unnatural'

Yousef died at St Thomas's Hospital, in London, on Sunday.

Southwark coroner Dr Andrew Harris said he is treating his death as "unnatural".

Dr Harris is holding a review meeting in public to decide, "whether an autopsy is required and the initial steps to be taken in the investigation".

Yousef's parents, representatives from Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Trust and the manufacturer of the intravenous feed have all been invited to attend.

Public Health England announced one baby had died, and another 14 were ill with blood poisoning on Wednesday.

Three new cases came to light yesterday. Two are said to be likely with one confirmed.

The contaminated batches of feed have since been withdrawn, although as they expired on Monday none should have been used since then.

A total of 162 units of the feed were sent out from the contaminated batches to more than 20 hospitals. It is possible other cases will emerge as tests are carried out.

What is Bacillus cereus?

• A type of bacterium that produces toxins that cause two types of illness
• The most common form causes nausea and vomiting
• The symptoms may start one to six hours after eating contaminated food
• It is commonly found in dust, soil and vegetation and is likely to be on most surfaces
• The poison is not passed from one person to another and symptoms do not usually last longer than a day
• Less common is an illness which causes fever and diarrhoea
• These symptoms, which may be serious, usually start six to 24 hours after eating and can last for one or two days

'Saddened'

Yesterday, the manufacturer of the feed, ITH Pharma, said it was "saddened" by what had happened and was cooperating fully with the investigation.

The company said the suspected contamination had been traced to a "sourced" single raw material ingredient, but it has not given more details of the material it received from one of its suppliers.

The cases have been reported at:

• Chelsea and Westminster NHS Trust, London (four)
• Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, London (three)
• Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust (three)
• Addenbrooke's, Cambridge University Hospitals (two)
• Luton and Dunstable University Hospital (two)
• The Whittington Hospital, London (one)
• Peterborough City Hospital (one)
• Southend University Hospital (one probable case)
• Basildon University Hospital (one possible case)

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Sleep's memory role discovered

6 June 2014 Last updated at 00:44 By James Gallagher Health and science reporter, BBC News

The mechanism by which a good night's sleep improves learning and memory has been discovered by scientists.

The team in China and the US used advanced microscopy to witness new connections between brain cells - synapses - forming during sleep.

Their study, published in the journal Science, showed even intense training could not make up for lost sleep.

Experts said it was an elegant and significant study, which uncovered the mechanisms of memory.

It is well known that sleep plays an important role in memory and learning. But what actually happens inside the brain has been a source of considerable debate.

Researchers at New York University School of Medicine and Peking University Shenzhen Graduate School trained mice in a new skill - walking on top of a rotating rod.

They then looked inside the living brain with a microscope to see what happened when the animals were either sleeping or sleep deprived.

Their study showed that sleeping mice formed significantly more new connections between neurons - they were learning more.

And by disrupting specific phases of sleep, the research group showed deep or slow-wave sleep was necessary for memory formation.

During this stage, the brain was "replaying" the activity from earlier in the day.

Prof Wen-Biao Gan, from New York University, told the BBC: "Finding out sleep promotes new connections between neurons is new, nobody knew this before.

"We thought sleep helped, but it could have been other causes, and we show it really helps to make connections and that in sleep the brain is not quiet, it is replaying what happened during the day and it seems quite important for making the connections."

Analysis

This is just the latest piece of science to highlight the importance of sleep.

A new reason for sleep was discovered last year when experiments showed the brain used sleep to wash away waste toxins built up during a hard day's thinking.

However, there are concerns that people are not getting enough sleep.

As part of the BBC's Day of the Body Clock, Prof Russell Foster argued that society had become "supremely arrogant" in ignoring the importance of sleep, leading to "serious health problems".

These include:

• cancer
• heart disease
• type-2 diabetes
• infections
• obesity

The reward for more sleep, Prof Foster argues, is we would all be "better human beings."

BBC Body Clock: What makes you tick

BBC Science: Sleep

Further tests showed how significant sleep was.

Mice doing up to an hour's training followed by sleep were compared with mice training intensively for three hours but then sleep deprived.

The difference was still stark, with the sleepers performing better and the brain forming more new connections.

Prof Gan added: "One of the implications is for kids studying, if you want to remember something for long periods you need these connections.

"So it is probably better to study and have good sleep rather than keep studying."

Commenting on the findings, Dr Raphaelle Winsky-Sommerer, from the University of Surrey, told the BBC: "This is very impressive, carefully crafted and using a combination of exquisite techniques to identify the underlying mechanisms of memory.

"They provide the cellular mechanism of how sleep contributes to dealing with experiences during the day.

"Basically it tells you sleep promotes new synaptic connections, so preserve your sleep."

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Parents arrested over obese child

6 June 2014 Last updated at 12:43

A couple have been arrested by police on suspicion of cruelty and neglect of their obese child.

A 49-year-old man and a 44-year-old woman, from King's Lynn in Norfolk, were questioned by officers over the child's care and released on bail.

Police said intervention at this level was "very rare" and only occurred where other attempts to protect the child had been unsuccessful.

A spokeswoman added police were working with health and social services.

The Sun reported the couple's 11-year-old son is 5ft 1in (1.5m) and 15 stone, with a body mass index (BMI) of 41.8.

It alleged concerned teachers and doctors prompted intervention by social services and then police.

Police and Norfolk County Council said it would not discuss the "victim" or the circumstances of the case.

'Protection from harm'

The couple were arrested in March on suspicion of child neglect and cruelty under section 1 of the Children's Act 1933.

"When dealing with sensitive issues such as obesity and neglect of children, officers from the force's Child Abuse Investigation Unit work closely with partners, significantly with both health care and social services, to ensure any response to address them are proportionate and necessary," police said.

"Any action taken by any agency will be subject to a joint strategy and will always be taken with the welfare of the child and their protection from harm as paramount."

Norfolk County Council spokeswoman said: "Our priority will always be the health, well-being and safety of Norfolk's children and we will always do all we can to support families to meet their children's needs."

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Pollution tie to irregular heartbeat

5 June 2014 Last updated at 00:33 By Helen Briggs BBC News, Health, Science, Environment

Air pollution is linked to increased risk of developing an irregular heartbeat and blood clots in the lung, research suggests.

The impact of air pollution on the risk of heart attack and stroke is less clear, say UK experts.

Analysis of data from England and Wales shows air pollution is particularly harmful in the elderly.

Further research is needed on pollution and cardiovascular health, says the British Heart Foundation.

A team at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine analysed data collected in England and Wales between 2003 and 2009 on links between cardiovascular problems and short-term air pollution.

They found short-term air pollution was linked to arrhythmia (abnormal heart rhythm) and blood clots in the lung.

The strongest link was in the over-75s and in women, lead researcher Dr Ai Milojevic told BBC News.

"Our study found some evidence of air pollution effects on irregular heart beat (arrhythmia) but no clear evidence on heart attack (Myocardial Infarction) and stroke which represents ultimately blood clotting process[es]," she said.

"Elderly people and hospital patients with chronic ischaemic heart disease or irregular heart beat are observed to be at particular risk."

Bigger picture

Commenting on the study, published in the journal, Heart, the British Heart Foundation said previous studies had shown air pollution could make existing heart and circulatory conditions, including heart attacks, worse in vulnerable people.

"This research adds weight to what we already know, but goes further to suggest a link between air pollution and an increased risk of blood clots in the lungs and heart rhythm atrial fibrillation," said Julie Ward, senior cardiac nurse.

"But, as with many studies, we do need to look at the bigger picture and, although this is a large comprehensive study, it did have its limitations.

"We do, therefore, recognise that further research into exactly how air pollution particles affect the cardiovascular system needs to be carried out."

Seven million people died as a result of air pollution in 2012, according to World Health Organization estimates.

Its findings suggest a link between air pollution and heart disease, respiratory problems and cancer.

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Camel infection 'led to Mers death'

5 June 2014 Last updated at 00:33 By James Gallagher Health and science reporter, BBC News

Doctors believe they have found the first evidence that a new deadly virus has been transmitted from a camel to people.

The animals have been suspected as the source of Middle East respiratory syndrome (Mers).

A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine has found "identical" Mers viruses in camels and their owner.

The 44-year-old man, from Saudi Arabia, died of the infection.

There have been 681 cases of Mers, leading to 204 deaths, since the virus was first detected in June 2012.

The precise source of the infection has been unclear.

The man, who was treated at King Abdulaziz University Hospital in Jeddah, kept nine camels that had been sick shortly before he was infected.

Medical notes show he had treated his camels with nose drops.

An analysis of viral samples taken from both the camels and the patient showed that "the full genome sequence from the two isolates was identical", the report said.

It added: "These data suggest that this fatal case of human Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus infection was transmitted through close contact with an infected camel."

Jonathan Ball, a professor of virology at Nottingham University, told the BBC: "All the evidence points to camels being the culprit. This is probably the first time the virus sequence is identical and suggests this is a case of transmission.

"One of the things that hasn't been resolved is whether or not it is respiratory transmission. The man was administering nose drops to the camel, but there are also reasonable amounts of virus in camel milk."

Prof Paul Kellam, of the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute in Cambridge, told the BBC: "This work further supports camels as a source for Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus and is the first to isolate the virus from a camel.

"However, as with other studies recently published, the camels were sampled after the human patient was diagnosed, making direction of infection difficult to prove.

"To be definitive, camel herds will need to be prospectively followed and showed to be infected with Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus and infectious prior to a documented transmission event to a human."

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Three new baby poisoning cases

5 June 2014 Last updated at 15:03

Three new cases of babies developing blood poisoning from a suspected contaminated drip have come to light.

It brings the total number of newborns infected to 18, many of them were premature babies. One of them has died.

The babies were being cared for in neonatal intensive care units in nine different hospitals and are said to be responding to antibiotic treatment.

Of the three new cases, two are said to be likely with one confirmed, Public Health England said.

All started displaying symptoms between Thursday and Saturday last week, but have only now been reported to Public Health England.

The cases were reported after the alarm was raised on Wednesday. The contaminated batches have since been withdrawn, although as they expired on Monday none should have been used since then.

They were all given the liquid feed direct to their bloodstream as they could not be mouth fed.

A total of 162 units were sent out from the contaminated batch to more than 20 hospitals.

'Saddened'

Public Health England and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) are investigating the outbreaks.

The manufacturer of the feed, ITH Pharma, has said it was "saddened" by what has happened and was cooperating fully with the investigation.

The cases have been reported at:

• Chelsea and Westminster NHS Trust, London (four)
• Guy's and St Thomas's NHS Foundation Trust, London (three)
• Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust (three)
• Addenbrooke's, Cambridge University Hospitals (two)
• Luton and Dunstable University Hospital (two)
• The Whittington Hospital, London (one)
• Peterborough City Hospital (one)
• Southend University Hospital (one probable case)
• Basildon University Hospital (one possible case)

The baby that died was being treated at Guy's and St Thomas's. The baby died on Sunday after being diagnosed the previous day.

Bacillus cereus

• A type of bacterium that produces toxins that cause two types of illness
• The most common form causes nausea and vomiting
• The symptoms may start one to six hours after eating contaminated food
• The poison is not passed from one person to another and symptoms do not usually last longer than a day
• Less common is an illness which causes fever and diarrhoea
• These symptoms, which may be serious, usually start six to 24 hours after eating and can last for one or two days

The investigation is focussing on the production of the batches on Tuesday 27 May.

Speaking outside the company's north west London base, ITH Pharma managing director Karen Hamling said: "From investigations carried out so far, it would appear the potential contamination is linked to a single sourced raw material ingredient.

"As a mother, as a pharmacist , as someone who has worked for 30 years in healthcare, inside and outside the NHS, I am deeply saddened that one baby has died and 14 others have fallen ill from septicaemia."

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Three-person babies 'in two years'

3 June 2014 Last updated at 13:11 By James Gallagher Health and science reporter, BBC News

Scientists will be ready to create babies from three people in around two years, if it is made legal, a review says.

The technique, using eggs from two women and one man's sperm, would be used to prevent deadly mitochondrial diseases.

The UK fertility regulator said there was no evidence that it would be unsafe, but called for extra checks.

Changes to fertility regulations are being considered by government.

The illnesses are caused by damage to the tiny power stations in every cell of the body called mitochondria.

One in every 6,500 babies are born with severe mitochondrial disease which means they have insufficient energy to function - it leads to muscle weakness, blindness, heart failure and even death.

Mitochondria are passed only from mother to child.

A scientific panel, assembled by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA), assessed two advanced forms of IVF using material from three people - the parents to be and a woman with healthy mitochondria.

Continue reading the main story

Prof Robin Lovell-Badge, from the Medical Research Council and a member of the scientific panel, said: "The direction of travel still suggests that it is all safe, but we don't know what's round the corner so we're being a little cautious."

The HFEA report called for a series of final tests before either of the procedures could be performed.

This would include a more detailed assessment of the efficiency of both proposed techniques when using human eggs or embryos.

The risk to the child and any subsequent generations of mutated mitochondria being transferred during the procedure also need to be investigated in more detail.

"I think that [two years] is not a bad estimation. The other sorts of experiments that we thought were necessary, again it will take about two years to complete all of those."

Prof Andy Greenfield, who chaired the scientific review panel, said safety was "not a straightforward issue".

He added: "Are these techniques safe in humans? We won't know that until it's actually done in humans.

"Until a healthy baby is born we cannot say 100% that these techniques are safe, if you think back to when IVF was a new technology all of these questions were asked before IVF."

Mitochondria have their own tiny set of DNA, so any resulting children will have genetic material from three people.

The treatments would class as germ-line therapy, causing changes which would be passed down through the generations.

Ethical concerns have been raised and some campaign groups are worried it could be the thin end of the wedge to genetic modification of people.

'As soon as we can'

The UK government has in principle backed three-person babies. The chief medical officer, Prof Dame Sally Davies, said last year: "It's only right that we look to introduce this life-saving treatment as soon as we can."

This scientific review was commissioned by government as part of a wider consultation. The Department of Health will publish its response to the consultation in the coming months and says a firmer timescale for any regulatory changes will be revealed then.

A spokesperson said: "Mitochondrial donation will give women who carry severe mitochondrial disease the opportunity to have children without passing on devastating genetic disorders.

"It will also keep the UK at the forefront of scientific development in this area."

Sarah Norcross, the director of the Progress Educational Trust, said: "The scientific review committee have given a considered thumbs up to allowing techniques to avoid the transmission of inherited mitochondrial disease to be used in clinic.

"We therefore urge the Government to press ahead and pass regulations to allow families blighted by mitochondrial disease to benefit as soon as possible."

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