The family of a baby has called for an inquiry into the care he received in his last hours, after doctors had been granted court permission to withhold aggressive treatment while attempting to resuscitate him after a heart attack.

Ruth Winston-Jones's 10-month-old son Luke died in the early hours of yesterday.

She claimed later yesterday that he "was not given every chance", because medical staff did not inject him with adrenaline, as had been done on previous occasions.

The boy had a rare genetic disorder leading to the likelihood of heart attacks, and more than 90% of such babies die within a year. His mother accepted that he was terminally ill.

A spokeswoman for the Royal Liverpool Children's NHS Trust said staff at Alder Hey children's hospital had given him the best possible care at all times.

He was diagnosed as having Edwards' Syndrome shortly after birth and never left hospital.

Yet the question of how far doctors should go in prolonging his life became a public battle between his relatives and medical staff.

As the second so-called "right to life" case heard by the high court in a month, it provoked nationwide debate. Trust officials brought the case to clarify their duties after disagreeing with his family about how best to treat him.

Yesterday his mother said she was "severely traumatised" by her loss, and added that she had asked her legal team to look into taking action against Alder Hey.

"It is the end of my world. I have lost my precious little boy," said Ms Winston-Jones, 35, from Holyhead, north Wales, who is separated from Luke's father. She has two other children.

"Not only have I lost him, but I have lost him in the worst possible way.

"There is no doubt in my mind that he could have been saved.

"I will take this all the way to the top."

Her sister, Jacqui Kirkwood, who was also with the boy when he died, added: "The whole family is grieving, but we are also angry as well, because of the actions of the medical staff. We want a full inquiry into what happened, we will not let this rest."

The trust's spokeswoman said that medical staff had "fully complied" with the high court ruling.

"Luke's condition had significantly deteriorated over the past 48 hours and so, despite extensive resuscitation [attempts] lasting over an hour, we were unsuccessful," she said.

"We believe that Luke and his family have received the best care available to him at all times. Luke's family are now being supported by our bereavement care team.

"As this case may be the subject of a coroner's investigation, we are unable to comment further at this stage."

Manual resuscitation attempts normally last less than half an hour. Adrenaline is not always used, because medical staff may consider that it will be of no use.

Last month's case was prompted by the boy's previous heart attacks. Alder Hey and Gwynedd hospital in Bangor, where he was originally treated, jointly applied for a declaration that further aggressive treatment would not be in his best interests if he suffered another cardiac arrest.

On average babies born with Edwards' Syndrome survive for less than two months. More than 90% die within a year.

The rare chromosomal disorder causes widespread damage to organs, and the boy had severe developmental delays, feeding difficulties, and abnormalities of the urinary tract.

Ms Winston-Jones accepted that his illness was terminal, and said she had no wish to cause her son a moment's discomfort or distress - however inadvertently. But, she argued, he had already beaten the odds.

The doctors who diagnosed him predicted that he would live only days. Instead, it was 10 months. He was born with three holes in his heart, but two healed without surgery.

Ms Winston-Jones claimed that she knew of individuals who had lived into their 20s or 30s despite the disorder.

Most importantly, she argued, her son was "a little person with a real personality" and "100 per cent capable of feeling and giving love".

Dame Elizabeth Butler-Sloss, president of the high court's family division, ruled that it would not be in the boy's best interests to be put on a ventilator if his condition deteriorated.

A ventilator meant inserting a tube into his throat and giving him a general anaesthetic. The judge said that doing so would carry an "exceptionally high risk" of triggering a heart attack.

The trust withdrew its application for a declaration that cardiac massage would not be in the boy's best interests, and Dame Elizabeth made it clear in her ruling that a decision on whether to use it would be left to the doctors.

In the event, they did massage the boy's heart, as Ms Winston-Jones had requested. It was not enough to save her son.