VIJAYAWADA: Confusion prevailed at the New Government General Hospital (GGH) on Saturday with the parents of a 15-year-old girl, who was declared dead by doctors, insisting that she was alive.
The deceased girl, Pothina Sai Durga, a resident of Rajarajeswari Pet, suffered from fever and developed breathing problems on December 23. She was administered some medicines prescribed by a local registered medical practitioner (RMP). With no signs of improvement in her condition, Sai Durga was admitted to the government hospital on December 25.
After some tests, doctors at the GGH realised that the girl was suffering from viral fever and her platelet count declined alarmingly. Durga’s condition further deteriorated after two days and she slipped into a coma. Doctors pronounced her dead at 12 noon on Friday. The parents took the body to their home and made preparations to perform her last rites at 11 am on Saturday. “While giving the last bath to the body, we observed she was breathing and moving her limbs. Soon after, we also found froth coming from her mouth,” said the girl’s mother Manga.
An elated Manga rushed to their family doctor and asked him to check Durga’s pulse. The family reached the government hospital where doctors tried to convince the parents that Durga was no more and the movements in her body were because of the process of rigor mortis. Addressing the media, government hospital Superintendent Chakradhar said Durga had breathed her last on Friday itself and her death was confirmed after conducting ECG and other relevant tests. He further stated that the confusion was due to rigor mortis. Meanwhile, Minister for Health and Medical Education Kamineni Srinivas Rao ordered the Director of Medical Education to hold inquiry into the incident.