A SECOND family at the centre of the North-East CJD scare have complained about their treatment at the hands of health officials.

The couple, in their 50s, who live in the Darlington area, had an appointment at Middlesbrough General Hospital on Wednesday.

The same morning officials at the hospital began contacting 24 patients after fears that surgical instruments used on a patient with the incurable Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD) may have been used on other patients who had undergone brain surgery.

The couple, who have asked not to be identified, contacted the hospital helpline early on Thursday morning and were told they would be given information about CJD after their appointment.

But the couple claimed they were left upset and humiliated after another consultant allegedly withheld information and then ignored them.

"My wife was left in tears after our meeting," her husband said.

After their original appointment the couple said they were shown into a room with two doctors.

When asked about the likely risk of infection one of the consultants allegedly told them "you will not get CJD" and refused to give any information about possible symptoms.

The patient's husband, who is suffering from a rare form of cancer, said: "I couldn't believe his attitude. My wife, who has been treated for a brain tumour, was upset.

"He was talking to us as if we were children."

After allegedly being "ignored", the couple walked out and left the hospital.

"My wife was extremely distressed. I wish we hadn't bothered," he said.

The couple were also critical of a statement issued by the South Tees Hospitals Trust on Thursday claiming that the 24 patients were being allocated a named person to support them.

"No one has contacted us about this," he said.

A spokeswoman for the South Tees Hospitals Trust, said: "We can only apologise for any upset or distress caused.

"If the family would like to contact us again we will do our best to help them. They can come to the hospital or, if they wish, we could visit them at home."

She confirmed that arrangements to allocate a named person to support patients were being finalised and a letter from chief executive Bill Murray would be sent out to each patient shortly.

Last week, a 38-year-old mother-of-one from Darlington told The Northern Echo how she underwent three brain operations at Middlesbrough General Hospital within a week.

She also intends to make an official complaint over the way the crisis was handled after the hospital failed to contact her, despite her being "on the list".

She rang the helpline three times during the day and on each occasion was told someone would call back.

Eventually, her sister called at 4.50pm and was told the woman, who asked to be known only as Mandy, was at "minimal risk"