Temple Street Children's Hospital in Dublin has admitted that pituitary glands were removed from children in the course of post-mortems at the hospital.
The glands were removed from the dead children "without consultation and without the permission of the parents", the hospital's secretary/manager, Mr Paul Cunniffe, said.
The Children's Hospital is the third to admit it took glands from children's bodies. In a statement, the hospital said it "very much regrets" that the practice took place between 1974 and 1985. It apologised "unreservedly to parents and families for the hurt and distress that this announcement will cause them".
The hospital has set up a freephone line for parents where "information and counselling" will be on offer, at 1800 484948, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. from Monday to Friday.
The Faculty of Pathology at the Royal College of Physicians in Ireland issued new guidelines on post-mortem practices for hospitals and pathologists. They include a new post-mortem consent form which addresses issues such as the retention of tissue for educational and research purposes. It also allows families to limit the extent of a non-coroner's autopsy to specific areas of the body.
The campaigning group, Pa rents for Justice, says it has received more than 2,000 complaints. Legal action is pending in two of the cases.
