Ex-Children's doctor accused of giving kids unnecessary genital exams
- Dignity 4Patients
- Jan 28
- 4 min read
By Kevin Grasha- 28/01/2026- Cincinnati Enquirer- [Cincinnati, USA]- [Howard Saal]
A former longtime doctor at Cincinnati Children's who is accused of possessing more than 150,000 images and hundreds of videos of children being sexually abused also faces allegations in civil lawsuits that he performed medically unnecessary genital exams.
According to one of the lawsuits, at least two families reported their concerns – one family directly to Cincinnati Children's administrators and the other to their primary care doctor, which led to a report to law enforcement.
No charges were filed based on the allegations. But according to the lawsuit, the parents of a child who in 2024 reported allegations to their primary care doctor were told by the hospital that Howard Saal would "meet with family relations."
The nature and outcome of that meeting are not clear, but the lawsuit says Saal continued to see patients until July 2025, when he left the hospital. That happened a month after his house in Evendale was searched as part of the federal investigation into the images and videos.
A spokesperson for Cincinnati Children's said the hospital does not comment on litigation. Attorneys for Saal have not responded to messages seeking comment.
Multiple lawsuits have been filed against Saal and Cincinnati Children's, beginning in August 2025, all in Hamilton County Common Pleas Court. Court documents show all the cases are in the process of being consolidated before one judge.
Another lawsuit filed in mid-November by Cincinnati attorney Alan Statman lists more than 80 plaintiffs, identified only by their initials, who were Saal's former patients.
According to court documents, that lawsuit also could be consolidated with the earlier cases.
Lawsuits filed after criminal charges
Statman initially filed a lawsuit in August, a few days after federal prosecutors announced that Saal, 73, had been charged with possessing and transporting child sexual abuse material. Two additional lawsuits involving six children were filed in September.
According to court documents, Cincinnati Children's employed Saal, a specialist in genetic disorders and birth defects, for more than 30 years.
The lawsuits describe how Saal had a camera at nearly every appointment − to document medical issues, he said − and that he photographed children who were nude or partially clothed. Attorneys for the children say there are concerns about what Saal did with many of the photos. Only some photos were found in the children's medical records.
“Families do not know whether images of their children (were) stored, shared, destroyed or even if they remain in the possession of” Saal, court documents say.
Saal surrendered his medical license on July 25, 2025. His license was permanently revoked Aug. 13.
Concerns about doctor go back decades
The earliest concerns about Saal described in the lawsuits date back more than two decades.
One of the lawsuits filed in September alleges that Saul performed two vaginal examinations on a young girl between 1998 and 2000, when she was 2, and he was the only physician to ever do that.
The lawsuit says the girl's mother reported her concerns to Cincinnati Children's administration, which transferred the girl's care to another geneticist.
That geneticist left the hospital in 2011, and Saal again became her doctor.
The lawsuit says Saal used a camera during the examinations and "required her to undress," at least partially, for photos. It says Saal placed the girl in "odd positions" and would caress her skin and tell her how it was soft and "velvety."
Saal told the girl's mother, according to the lawsuit, that he used the photos to track her progress and was writing a medical journal article about her.
Nurses and employees, according to the lawsuit, often joked about Saal's "excessive photography."
2024 allegations
The lawsuit also alleges that during a July 2024 appointment, Saal positioned himself between a boy and his parents, blocking their view, then reached into the boy’s pants and touched his genitals.
During that same appointment, documents say that Saal examined the boy’s brother and “smacked” the child’s buttocks, saying, “I just can’t help myself.”
No criminal charges were filed based on those allegations, but according to the lawsuit, the parents reported Saal’s conduct to their primary care doctor, and the conduct was then reported to authorities.
Cincinnati Children’s told the parents that Saal would meet with hospital officials, the lawsuit says. But he was still granted privileges and continued to see patients.
Trial dates have not been set for the lawsuits or the criminal case.
If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article and were abused in state run medical and health facilities, you can contact Dignity4Patients, whose helpline is open Monday to Thursday, 10am to 4pm.
Dignity4Patients Commentary: A hospital’s culture tells a powerful story not only about what people know, but about what they are willing, or unwilling, to act upon. When staff are aware of sexual misconduct yet fail to intervene, it exposes troubling imbalances of power and a lack of meaningful protections for those who come forward.
Silence in the face of misconduct is rarely accidental. It often reflects fear of retaliation, unclear reporting pathways, inadequate training, or leadership failures in accountability. Without strong oversight and transparent processes, institutions risk enabling harm rather than preventing it. This reality underscores the urgent need for comprehensive sexual assault prevention measures and proactive education within healthcare settings.