For someone who has limited access to western news due to location, Jahi McMath. Please help

[Nanjing to Seoul]

me understand what happened to this poor child to put her into this sad, deplorable state.

I am not talking the political football she is about to become. . .I mean how did something routine turn so viciously deadly?

Or am I missing something that the spin machine news media isn't telling me.

[Savannahmann]

1. I'll try.

I doubt I know the whole story, and I doubt anyone but those directly involved know the whole story.

Jahi was having a routine procedure, tonsillectomy. I had the same procedure at about her age, millions of people have. Exactly what happened during the procedure hasn't been discussed, but as near as I can tell it's one of those 1 in a million complications you hear about. Jahi went into cardiac arrest. Efforts to revive her were successful, but too late to prevent brain damage/death according to Doctors.

I suppose that's part of the problem that people are having with the result. It is a routine surgery. Barely qualifying as such only because a scalpel is used and a couple stitches are thrown in to speed the healing of the incision. This result wasn't supposed to happen, the odds against it are astronomical, and perhaps the Doctor fumbled the immediate response because of that, I don't know.

All we do know is a minor, routine procedure ended up with a horrific outcome.

I think I read that the girl was having trouble sleeping, due to snoring, and the Doctors thought that the removal of the Tonsils would help that. I can't remember, so that may be wrong. For me, I was having a lot of sore throats, and infections, and the doctor felt that yanking the tonsils was the best choice. Again, I was fine after a couple days, the first pain pill was hard to get down, but that was the worst I experienced with the procedure.

I know that my heart goes out to the family, and part of me admires their determination to save their child. I guess I'm a sucker for the underdog, hoping that the impossible does happen. But I was faced with the same decision once, not with a child, but a parent. After speaking with the Doctors, I made the decision to let them pass. It was a miserable time, and a miserable experience, and I do sympathize with the family.

I wish I had more information for you. But as near as I can tell, nobody knows exactly what happened, perhaps the Doctor who performed the surgery, but he's not talking to the press. It just wasn't supposed to happen, as stupid as that sounds.

[tammywammy]

4. It was not just a tonsillectomy

rom CHO’s attorney’s response court filings on December 20, we learned that Jahi had not had a simple tonsillectomy, but actually several invasive procedures to open up her upper airway. She’d undergone an adenotonsillectomy, uvulopalatopharyngoplasty, and submucous resection of bilateral inferior turbinates. In laymen’s terms, her tonsils and adenoids had been surgically removed from the back of her throat, her uvula (that thing hanging down at the back of your throat) and soft palate removed or remodeled, and excess soft tissue removed from the back of her nose. These tissues are very fragile and highly vascular, meaning they can bleed a lot, as anyone who has had a nosebleed can testify to.

http://sprocket-trials.blogspot.com/2014/01/jahis-legacy.html

[tammywammy]

2. It was not just a routine procedure.

She was having multiple procedures for her sleep apnea.

Edited to add: here's a good website with lots of info - http://sprocket-trials.blogspot.com/2014/01/jahis-legacy.html

[jtuck004]

5. This is possibly the best, well-thought out, and unbiased look by a professional I have seen.

Thank you for that.

[tammywammy]

6. I saw the link in LBN

Nonhlanhla posted it in this thread: http://www.democraticunderground.com/1014687978

[catbyte]

8. +1000

[Nanjing to Seoul]

7. Blogspot is blocked in China.

[NYC_SKP]

3. The child was obese and having sleeping difficulties, a surgeon performed THREE procedures at once.

In a better world, the parent and child would have been given nutritional and exercise coaching and support to lose weight and become more fit.

Instead, they decided to perform surgery, not just a tonsillectomy but two other procedures, it's insane!

The news of the possible transfer came as the state Department of Public Health confirmed Tuesday it is investigating Children's Hospital Oakland and its handling of the Oakland 13-year-old after her tonsil surgery and two other procedures to remove throat and nasal tissue, complications from which left her brain dead.

Jahi underwent three surgical procedures for the treatment of her sleep apnea.

This included a tonsillectomy, uvulopalatopharyngoplasty (UPPP), and removal of nasal turbinates.

Though initially described as a “routine tonsillectomy,” this degree of surgery in children is not routine. It is extensive. When performed on a child, the risk is high. “

Performing this kind of surgery inside the sinus cavities, if it goes wrong, can result in uncontrollable bleeding and resultant brain death.

These were UNNECESSARY surgeries. The poor child was overweight and needed a different kind of medical care.

Unbelievable that they did this to her.

And so sad.

Hope this helps.

[Brickbat]

9. As someone with sleep apnea, I'm shocked they performed surgery on a 13-year-old.

Surgery is the final, desperate measure taken when treating apnea. Apnea responds well to a variety of treatments. Surgery for a 13-year-old is negligent and where the family should be focusing its efforts, IMO.