A Whitehorse woman has been awarded $60,000 in damages after what a court has called doctor negligence dating back to 1986 contributed to two decades of chronic pain.

Her suffering stemmed from an IUD "which ought to have been removed,” a Yukon Supreme Court justice ruled last week.

Chrystal Tupper, now 54, had an IUD — an intrauterine device for birth control — inserted in 1985, two months after giving birth.

She soon began to feel "abdominal discomfort,” "pain during intercourse” and other symptoms.

In 1986 Tupper discovered she was pregnant again, "notwithstanding the presence of the IUD.”

She asked a doctor to remove it and to perform an abortion and a tubal ligation — a sterilization procedure.

Dr. Roger Mitchell performed the abortion in July 1986. He testified that he could not tell if the IUD had been "sucked out” or expelled prior to the operation, but assumed it was no longer in Tupper's body, the judge noted in his decision.

Tupper was then transferred to the care of Dr. Gerald Doersam, who carried out a tubal ligation.

Doersam also assumed the IUD had been expelled and did not consider an X-ray, which would likely have revealed the IUD, the judge wrote.

"As far as Ms. Tupper was aware, her IUD had been removed,” Judge Ged Hawco said.

On and off for the next 20 years, Tupper continued to feel "general pelvic and abdominal pain,” among other problems, according to the ruling.

"She had numerous visits to her family doctor and to gynecologists, but no one seemed to know what was wrong with her,” Hawco wrote.

Only in July 2006, almost exactly 20 years after the initial operation, was the IUD discovered during a hysterectomy and removed.

The judge ruled that Mitchell and Doersam "were negligent in failing to ensure the plaintiff's IUD was not within her body at the conclusion of the abortion and the tubal ligation procedures.

"The plaintiff suffered numerous gynecological problems over the 20 years following the operation to remove her IUD. Not all of them were caused by the failure to remove the IUD, but many of them were.”

On top of recovering $60,000 in damages, Tupper received more than $5,000 in special damages for medical costs.

"Since having the IUD removed.... she feels much better and is enjoying life again,” Hawco wrote.

Dr. Michelle Belanger, a gynecologist called by Tupper, stated in a report:

"‘Missing IUDs'” must be accounted for .... Copper IUDs are known to cause an intense inflammatory response, which can lead to scarring pain and even perforations of the hollow organs such as the bladder or bowel.

"Because of these potential complications, abdominal IUDs require prompt surgical removal.”

Belanger said if a "missing” IUD is not discovered by laparoscopy — minimally invasive surgery with a telescope — ultrasounds and X-rays should be used.

"In my respectful view, the standard duty of care at the time required that if the IUD was neither visible nor accounted for, an X-ray ought to have been used to confirm that the IUD was not within the plaintiff's pelvic area,” the judge wrote.

"No discussion at all seems to have taken place between Dr. Mitchell and Dr. Doersam ....

"To all appearances, the removal of the IUD or its absence simply does not appear to have been considered by them.”