Mexico City: An experimental medical procedure carried out by doctors at a Mexican hospital on 500 patients caused 370 deaths between 1994 and 2007, activists have charged.
The procedure was carried out at the National Neurology and Neurosurgery Institute.
Groups like Democratic Doctors and Victims of Crimes Against Humanity said at a press conference in Mexico City that the prodecure was carried out without the patients' consent.
The procedure consisted of implanting a permanent inter-cranial device in patients suffering from hydrocephalus, a condition where there is a buildup of fluid inside the brain.
It was 'never approved by international health authorities' and that 'has caused damaging side effects and even death', alleged Rodolfo Ordanza, a doctor and member of one of the groups.
Maria de Lourdes Walkup, whose body was left half-paralysed by the procedure, demanded that authorities penalise those responsible.
The organisations have filed a complaint with the attorney general's office, saying that under Mexican law, experimental treatments require the patients' previous consent.
