12:07pm
Mr Myers says Dr Evans and Dr Bohin, before the trial, said air and milk had been forced down the NG Tube, and that a colleague of Letby had aspirated Child G's stomach before the 45ml feed [ie the stomach was 'pretty much empty']. He says that was the assumption.
He says the assumption was wrong. The nurse said she would have taken enough aspirate to assess the pH level of the stomach, but not enough to empty the stomach. She had said that would have been done with bigger babies who were stable.
He says the evidence "all falls apart". He says the nurse said there could have been undigested milk in there.
He says this "created a fundamental problem for the experts". He says the defence was critical of how the allegation "morphs", and focused on the description of the pH level.
He says the judge, Mr Justice James Goss, asked about that, and the nurse replied the pH level would not give an indication of how much milk was in the stomach.
Mr Myers says Dr Evans and Dr Bohin said low pH levels meant acid, and no milk in the stomach, and had "changed their lines of attack". Dr Bohin was "particularly vigorous" about it, saying pH of 4 was "very acidic" and milk would "neutralise" that reading. Mr Myers says the nurse "did not get that wrong".
He says in the case of Child P, there can be a low pH reading with a lot of milk in the stomach. He says 14ml of milk was aspirated, and a pH reading of 3, and a later reading gives 20ml aspirate and a pH reading of 3.