A woman died eight days after a "mishap" during surgery at a York private hospital, an inquest heard.

A coroner recorded a verdict of accidental death on Carolyn Grace Mollo, 61, of St Clement's Grove, York.

Mrs Mollo died in York District Hospital eight days after undergoing a hysterectomy at the Purey Cust Nuffield Hospital, in Precentors Court, off High Petergate.

She died from multiple organ failure, caused by peritonitis (inflammation of the abdomen), which was caused by a small hole made in her small intestine.

Coroner Donald Coverdale told the inquest: "On the balance of probabilities, I believe it occurred somehow during the course of the original surgery."

The operation was carried out at the private hospital in June last year by Elizabeth Mattock, a consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist at York District Hospital.

When Miss Mattock was asked if she believed the hole was caused by a mishap during surgery, she said: "I can think of no other logical explanation."

She said the operation had been straightforward and she would have expected to notice if the bowel had been damaged.

Over the five days following the operation, Mrs Mollo's condition deteriorated, but Miss Mattock thought it was due to a lack of fluids.

On June 11, her condition had become so serious that she was transferred to the intensive care unit at York District Hospital.

An investigative operation discovered the hole in her bowel. Her abdomen was washed out and she underwent two further investigative operations.

But consultant forensic pathologist Dr Carl Gray said: "The prognosis was then hopeless with no prospect of recovery." Mrs Mollo died on June 14.

Dr Gray said peritonitis was often difficult to spot in patients who had just had operations.

Miss Mattock told the hearing, attended by members of Mrs Mollo's family, that she had ruled out peritonitis as the cause of Mrs Mollo's deteriorating condition on clinical grounds.

Mr Coverdale said: "It is easy to speculate about what might have happened if there had been an earlier diagnosis of peritonitis. Miss Mattock used her best judgment in view of the situation presented to her."

He concluded: "The unhappy outcome of all these events was certainly not expected. It was not the usual outcome of this surgical procedure. It was the result of an operative mishap, which was an accident."

Updated: 11:58 Thursday, May 03, 2001