DENTAL-CHAIR DEATH

Hokitika Guardian, 27 July 1931, Page 5

DENTAL-CHAIR DEATH

SMALL BOY’S COLLAPSE. FATHER ANAESTHETIST. A tragic story of the death of the four-year-old sou of a doctor while his father and another doctor were extracting his bad teeth was disclosed at an inquest at Ebbw Vale, Monmouth, on •Jline 9, on Alexander Lovat Fraser. ,It was stated that Dr Ewen Lovat Fraser,- the father, arrived in Ebbw Vale' c)n June- 4 to take over the practice of Dr A. G, Boitiiyman, of WaunJiwyd. iDul'ihg the week-end the child complained Of a bad mbdtit and the father found lie had some bad'to'vtli, It was" decided to remove thorn. On June 8 Dr Bonnyman and the father gave the child chloroform. After two teeth had been removed the boy gave a low cry and drew up his legs, so his father gave his a further whiff oi chloroform. Two other teeth were removed and the doctors were about to taka out a fifth when the child ceased breathing. Artificial respiration was irried, but the child did not recover. In answer to the coroner, the father and Dr Bonnyman admitted that the child cried and moved during the extraction, showing that he was not completely anaesthetised. Neither doctor could say with certainty how many drops of chloroform were used or the lapse- of time between each drop. Dr H.- X. Taylor, who made a postmortem examination, said death was due to cardiac paralysis, caused by inhaling chloroform and the shock of having teeth drawn while incompletely anaesthetised. The jury returned a verdict of death by misadventure, expressing the view that the child was not completely anaesthetised, and that insufficient care was taken to ascertain the fact.