German intersexual sues over operation

Germany: A German intersexual has gone to court in Cologne seeking €100,000 compensation from the doctor who she says removed…

Germany:A German intersexual has gone to court in Cologne seeking €100,000 compensation from the doctor who she says removed her uterus and ovaries without her knowledge or consent 30 years ago.

The unprecedented case of Christiane Völling (48) may have consequences for Germany's estimated 80,000 intersexuals, recognised by law only as male or female, although they are not born with exclusively male or female chromosomes or genitals.

A week after Christiane's birth, puzzled hospital staff mistook the newborn's enlarged clitoris for a penis and entered the baby in official records as male.

Christiane's parents called her Thomas and raised her as a boy. During puberty, her body produced male hormones and she grew rapidly.

READ MORE

But at aged 17 during an operation to remove her gall bladder doctors discovered her intact uterus and ovaries. A year later these were removed - without her consent, she says.

"They didn't tell me. All the surgeon said was, 'There was a time when people like you were displayed at funfairs to earn money'," said Christiane in a newspaper interview.

It became clear at the opening of the trial yesterday that the case will be complex as Christiane's identity is at issue. Medical records are incomplete or missing and several doctors who treated her at the time are now dead.

The Cologne doctor who performed the operation says Christiane approached him after several attempts at self-mutilation. Her lawyers say she was not informed about all her options. A verdict is expected in February.