16-year old dies during minor nose surgery, court issues notice in Rs 7 crore damage suit

A 16-year-old died while undergoing a minor nose surgery of malignant hyperthermia allegedly after a drug reaction, prompting his mother to file a case against two Chennai-based doctors and the hospital for alleged medical negligence, seeking damage of Rs 7.02 crore.

The complainant claimed that the family was reportedly lured by the doctors for a risk­free, quick surgery, but instead the child ended up dead on the Operation Theatre table within an hour of the procedure.

Advertisement

While the tragic indicent took place on June 13, 2024, a three ­judge bench of the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (DCDRC) in Kolkata has now issued a notice against the ENT specialist Dr Rabi Ramalingam, the anaesthetist Dr Naurin, as well as KKR ENT Hospital in Chennai.

The doctors have been asked to appear before the commission and respond to the serious charges of “medical negligence” and “deceptive trade practice” mentioned in the complaint.

The child had deviated nasal septum, a condition with which most patients can live without any treatment. However some may prefer to get a permanent fix to the problem with a minor nasal surgery routinely performed in hospitals across Kolkata. The condition is treated only with over-the-counter medicines like antihistamines or nasal steroid sprays, the complaint mentioned.

However, falling under the trap of the hospital and the doctors, the deceased’s parents reportedly decided to take their child to Chennai for the Deviated Nasal Septum Surgery (DNS).

The doctors reportedly assured the family that the surgery would be performed in an out­patient clinic and the patient would be discharged within a couple of hours following the procedure.

The complainant mentioned that while DNS may emerge to be a serious medical condition on extremely rare occasions as an adverse reaction to a drug, deaths are usually unheard of, if corrective treatment is promptly given particularly with Dantrolene sodium.

However, the complainant claimed that the KKR ENT hospital and the doctors were “clearly ignorant” and did not even try to use Dantrolene sodium to save the patient.