29-month-old boy in critical condition after being given six times the prescribed dose of heart medication at Hong Kong public hospital
Toxicologists say however that patient’s condition may not be related to overdose
A 29-month-old boy with heart problems was in a critical condition on Wednesday night after being injected with six times the prescribed amount of a medication at Hong Kong’s Prince of Wales Hospital.
A spokesman for the public hospital in Sha Tin said the overdose of atropine, a drug for treating an abnormally slow heart rate, might not be the cause of the boy’s condition, citing clinical toxicology assessments. An investigation panel would be set up and a report submitted in eight weeks, he added.
The boy had undergone surgery in April 2016 for heart defects detected after he was born. He was also diagnosed with complete heart block. Doctors had suggested a permanent pacemaker, but his parents did not opt for one.
The patient was taken to the hospital’s emergency unit on Sunday for fever and difficulty in breathing.
String of blunders points to deeper illness in public health care
Paediatricians on duty prescribed him 0.26mg of atropine while referring to the Broselow tape, a colour-coded length-based tape measure that is used for paediatric emergencies.
The boy’s condition worsened, and he fell into a complete coma. Resuscitation was performed, and his heart rate gradually went back to normal before he was transferred to Queen Mary Hospital the following morning.
