BBC News Brazil
A critically ill baby at the center of a legal battle in Britain has died after the life support system keeping him alive was switched off.
Staff at Queen’s Medical Center (QMC) in the city of Nottingham, England, said they could do nothing for Indi Gregory, who suffered from a mitochondrial disorder.
The disease is characterized by dysfunction of mitochondria, a vital structure in cells that is responsible for producing energy.
Indi’s father, Dean Gregory, said the eightmonthold baby died at 1:45 a.m. local time on Monday (11/13) after being taken to a palliative care unit.
He said the mother, Claire Staniforth, “held the girl as she took her last breaths.”
Indi was moved to the location following a court ruling on Friday (10/11) that the life support machine that was keeping the girl alive could not be removed from the house where she lived.
The organization Christian Concern, which has been supporting the family, said Indi was moved to a palliative care unit on Saturday (11/11) with the help of an ambulance and security escort.
The group also reported being calm and sleeping during the trip.
The life support device was removed in the palliative care unit and she underwent invasive ventilation.
Gregory said he knew Indi “was special from the day she was born.”
Litigation
In recent months, Indi’s parents, who live in the town of Ilkeston, also in the United Kingdom, have taken a series of legal actions to prolong their daughter’s life.
Indi was a carrier of a mitochondrial disease, which prevents the body’s cells from producing energy. The British health system (NHS) states that the disease is incurable.
With support from the Christian Legal Centre, an organization affiliated with Christian Concern, the family attempted to persuade the UK Supreme Court and Court of Appeal, as well as judges at the European Court of Human Rights, that she should continue to receive care.
Experts said Indi was dying and the treatment she received caused pain and was unnecessary, but her parents disagreed with that assessment.
The couple also tried to move Indi to a hospital in Rome, Italy, but the idea was unsuccessful.
The text was originally published here.