New York, May 9 — A newborn baby remains in critical condition after suffering severe complications following a circumcision at a New York City hospital, according to his parents.
Tim and Gabrielle Groth welcomed their son, Cole, on March 31. Born with congenital heart disease, the infant required a stent to help regulate blood flow. After the procedure, his father said Cole was recovering well and nearly ready for discharge.
“He was one of the healthiest babies on the floor,” Tim Groth wrote in a GoFundMe post.
But on April 14, Cole underwent a routine circumcision at NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital. His parents say the procedure led to a medical emergency just hours later.
“I walk in and he is extremely pale. He is crying like I’ve never heard before,” Gabrielle Groth told CBS News. “It was not my healthy boy I saw just the day before.”
The hospital issued a statement to PEOPLE saying it could not comment on the case due to patient privacy laws.
According to Tim, Cole bled continuously for more than 10 hours after the circumcision. During that time, he said, the newborn’s vital organs were deprived of blood and oxygen, leading to damage to the liver, kidneys, and brain.
“Throughout the night, our son bled almost to death,” Tim wrote. “How does that happen in a cardiac NICU?”
As of April 20, Cole remained hospitalized in critical condition. His parents say he has had four surgeries in one week and continues to receive daily blood transfusions.
The Groths are speaking out in hopes of preventing similar incidents in the future.
“There is no place for carelessness in medicine in our country,” Tim said. “Could you imagine scheduling your son’s circumcision and possibly having him die? We don’t want any other families to go through this heartbreak.”
Gabrielle added that they are clinging to hope and looking forward to the day they can bring their son home.
“I want him to know how strong he is, and how much he fought,” she said.
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