Child Dies After Being Administered Nitrous Oxide Instead of Oxygen

An eight-year-old boy died and another was in a critical condition at Maharaja Yeshwantrao Hospital, Indore, after they were mistakenly given nitrous oxide, a widely used anesthetic, to breathe instead of oxygen.

The incident on May 29 led to the arrest of a contractor who installed the gas pipes in the 'modular pediatric operation theater' where the children were treated, said O.S. Bhadoria, chief of Sanyogitaganj police station here.

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‘Another 18-month-old boy is in a critical condition after being administered anesthesia instead of oxygen at Maharaja Yeshwantrao Hospital.’

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The operation theater has been sealed, and a first information report (FIR) has been registered, he said.

Ayush, 8, died on May 27 after he was administered 'oxygen' through a mask; he died in the operation theater.

Rajveer, who is only 18 months old, is in serious condition after being administered 'oxygen' on May 28 in the same operation theater.

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Sumit Shukla, a surgeon at the hospital, said that there are two separate color-coded pipes in the operation theater, one for oxygen and the other for nitrous oxide which is widely used medically for its anesthetic and analgesic effects.

It seemed that the pipe meant to supply oxygen yielded the wrong gas, he said.

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Shukla said the hospital was conducting its own inquiry as to how the horrible mix-up took place.

Some people, however, said the hospital has been guilty of gross medical negligence and is evading its responsibility in the matter.

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Local legislator and Congress leader Jitu Patwari said the culprits are among the administration and the hospital authorities, and they are the ones who should face stern action.

Contractor Rajendra Chadhary, who has been arrested, said he has been made a scapegoat.

"My job was only to install the pipes. Using those pipes to supply gas was the job of the hospital," he said.

Maharaja Yeshwantrao Hospital is the largest government hospital in Indore city.

Source-IANS