The former medical director of the National Haemophilia Treatment Centre yesterday defended his role in protecting children and mild haemophiliacs from infection with HIV.
Prof Ian Temperley said only a "very small number" of such patients became infected with the virus and, while he was not claiming any great credit for this, it did not happen merely by chance.
Of 20 to 30 children and mild haemophiliacs with factor 8 deficiency, he said, only four were infected with HIV and all of them received concentrates in the 1982-83 period, before most countries had begun limiting the use of such products.
Moreover, he said, no von Willebrand's disease patient here developed HIV, which was "fairly unique" internationally.
Asked by counsel for the Irish Haemophilia Society, Mr Martin Hayden, whether this was a consequence of his actions or mere "happenstance", the doctor said he thought he did "actively protect" the patients through minimising their exposure to concentrates and, therefore, "it wasn't just a matter of chance".
At the outset of yesterday's hearing, Prof Temperley said he wished to expand on evidence given on Wednesday relating to a recommendation by UK haemophilia treatment centre directors in June 1983, that domestic products be used in preference to imported concentrates for children and mild haemophliacs. Prof Temperley had stated the UK treaters did not necessarily follow their own recommendation, which stemmed from increasing concerns over the safety of imported, and particularly US, concentrates.
Prof Temperley said yesterday he had received information in recent days from three UK treatment directors. All said they had not changed to using locally-made cryoprecipitate in 1983-84 for children or mild haemophiliacs.
Mr Hayden informed the tribunal, however, that, after making a number of phone calls, he had established that at least seven UK centres did adhere to the 1983 recommendation. He said children and mild haemophiliacs at centres in Belfast, Edinburgh, Newcastle, Birmingham, Middlesex, Carlisle and Sunderland received domestic products only.
Prof Temperley did not dispute this claim but said the evidence he was giving related to whether the UK centres changed to using cryo at the time.
