A teen has died after she developed cardiac arrest when a routine tooth extraction became horribly wrong.
Sydney Galleger, 17, of Minnesota was scheduled for a routine wisdom tooth removal about a week ago. However, when she was almost through with the process, her pulse began to slow down very fast. Her blood pressure, meanwhile, rose. She was actually suffering from a cardiac arrest right at the dental chair.
The clinic then immediately performed emergency response including a CPR while they called 911. When the paramedics arrived, she was brought to the nearest hospital for stabilization before she was transferred to Masonic Children's Hospital under University of Minnesota.
Her health, over time, deteriorated. She was having more difficulty breathing. Sydney developed issues with her brain, which swelled. Even if the doctors had already drained the excess fluid to relieve the pressure on the skull, the problem still remained. Because her brain was also affected, she was already having seizures.
The doctors were already losing hope on the teen's case, although the family were still hoping she would pull through. According to her mother, Diane, who set up a Caringbridge page for her daughter, she believed that her daughter is a fighter. Nevertheless, she poignantly also mentioned that the organs may be donated if Sydney won't truly make it. And she didn't. In the same Caringbridge page, the sad news was posted a few hours ago.
Any kind of dental procedure including extraction of the wisdom tooth has a degree of risk. For example, the surgery can be so intensive that the patient will bleed profusely. It's also possible that with a wound that needs healing bacterial infection can set in.
Although some procedures can be carried out without sedation, in wisdom tooth removal, anesthesia is often important, and this can also lead to another problem.
Dental experts, however, want to reassure the public that these complications are now very rare. Many clinics are also equipped with emergency plans and kits.
