MOSCOW, April 3 (RIA Novosti) - A three-year-old boy
choked to death in a dental surgery in the Russian Volga city
of Samara after swallowing a piece of cotton wool, the
Komsomolskaya Pravda daily reported on Thursday.
Relatives told the paper that the boy was taken to the
dentist by his mother on March 26 to have a tooth pulled out.
However, when placed in the chair he struggled and began to
scream, so the dentist suggested that they call off the
operation.
His mother reportedly insisted that the tooth needed to
come out, so she and a nurse held the boy down while the
dentist wrenched out the tooth. A part of the tooth remained in
his mouth, so the dentist stopped up the gap with cotton pellet
while she prepared to finish the job.
When the dentist returned to the chair to take out the
remaining piece of the tooth, the terrified child began to
panic, and swallowed the cotton pellet. An ambulance was
called, and the dentist meanwhile attempted to fish out the
pellet. However, none of the tools at hand were of the right
shape to reach into the child's respiratory tract, where the
pellet was lodged.
An investigation is underway, and the dentist, who has 30
years of professional experience, could face charges of
criminal manslaughter. However, the child's parents have said
they will not push for a conviction, as the mother blames
herself for forcing her son into the dentist's chair.
The dentist is reportedly deeply traumatized by the
incident, and has been unable to return to work.
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