Caution and Procedure

9-Year-Old Dead After Dental Procedure With Anesthesia

Photo by Marcelo Leal on Unsplash

A 9-year-old girl underwent a dental procedure and was unresponsive for hours after her surgery. Her parents called 911 and paramedics transported the child to Rady Children's Hospital-San Diego while providing lifesaving measures during transport. When she arrived at the hospital, medical staff resumed the measures but to no avail. She was then pronounced dead.

The dentist who performed her anesthesiology had been disciplined by the state for a similar incident in 2016 in which he was accused of excessively administering drugs to a 54-year-old man. His heart stopped briefly during the dental procedure. The 9-year-old, Silvanna Moreno was placed under anesthesia for her dental procedure at Dreamtime Dentistry. During the surgical procedure, Dr. Ryan Watkins, a licensed dentist who is a trained and credentialed anesthesiologist, observed Silvanna and had no issues, the dental office stated. After the procedure, she was sent home into the care of her mother. She was discharged in stable condition; awake with stable vital signs. Silvanna fell asleep on her car ride home, she stayed asleep and was moved to her bed according to medical examiners. Her family checked on her throughout the day and called 911 when they realized that she was unresponsive.

When Silvanna arrived at the hospital, medical staff continued the lifesaving measures but nothing helped. In a statement, Dreamtime Dentistry said that they were deeply saddened by the tragic passing of their young patient. A GoFundMe account was created to help pay for her funeral expenses.