The attorney representing the family of a small child who died during a dental procedure said the boy wasn't given an adequate oxygen supply, reports KWCH-DT.
A preliminary report from medical records shows Abiel Zapata had an inadequate oxygen supply during a procedure at Wichita, Kan.-based Tiny Teeth Pediatric Dentistry, malpractice attorney Brad Prochaska told KWCH-DT. This, in turn, caused an irregular heart rhythm that led to no pulse, Mr. Prochaska said.
"Why would someone go get a dental procedure and come out dead?" Mr. Prochaska said, according to KWCH-DT. "It's a shocking result."
Mr. Prochaska said he intends to file a lawsuit in the next few weeks to ensure nothing like this ever happens again.
A police spokesperson previously said it was thought that the child had an unanticipated reaction to medicine provided during the dental procedure, reported KAKE.
"Tiny Teeth Pediatric Dentistry is devastated by the death of Abiel Valenzuela Zapata. We are praying for the family during this time and ask for the community to do so, as well," reads the practice's statement released through its attorney and cited by KWCH-DT.
"Like Abiel's family, we, too, want to understand how this tragic event may have occurred. Our practice has never experienced an incident like this, and we had no reason to expect this procedure would be anything other than routine.
"We would like to thank the EMS first responders who arrived only a few minutes after we called 911. They continued the CPR efforts we had begun and worked feverishly to save Abiel."