North Rhine-Westphalia
Seven-year-old suffers brain damage during dental operation – fine for anesthetist
The public prosecutor’s office accuses the 44-year-old defendant of having incorrectly intubated the then 7-year-old
© Lino Mirgeler / DPA
In Detmold, the discontinuation of legal proceedings against an anesthetist caused a sensation. After a routine procedure with general anesthesia, a seven-year-old patient suffered irreparable brain damage. The doctor claims to have made a mistake.
This article first appeared on RTL.de.
Four years ago, a seven-year-old was supposed to be treated for caries on several teeth – under general anesthesia in a doctor’s office. But now the girl is severely disabled. An anesthetist is said to have caused the brain damage through an alleged malpractice. The Detmold district court is now dropping the proceedings against a fine of 15,000 euros.
Was the 7-year-old wrongly intubated during dental treatment in Detmold?
Prosecutors accuse the 44-year-old defendant of having improperly intubated the girl in September 2017. The child suffered irreparable brain damage during the anesthesia, in which the oxygen is said to have been directed into the esophagus and not into the windpipe.
Doctor rejects allegations
The doctor is said to have recognized the mistake in the treatment of several milk teeth too late. The 44-year-old denies this and assumes that the airways are cramped, also known as bronchospasm.
The proceedings against a fine of 15,000 euros have now been discontinued. The doctor accepts the punishment.
If the procedure for negligent bodily harm is discontinued, the anesthetist is deemed to have no criminal record. He is still awaiting a civil lawsuit from the girl’s family, who want to claim at least 500,000 euros in compensation for pain and suffering.
Only last week it became known that a girl in Hesse had died after being anesthetized by a dentist.