Bhind (MP): In an unusual incident, a 12-year-old boy died of cardiac arrest on his school bus -- which his doctors said might be the youngest case of cardiac arrest in the state. The deceased has been identified as Manish Jatav, a student of class 4.
As informed by his family members, Manish had lunch with his brother in the school on Thursday afternoon, and while he was returning home from school, collapsed after boarding his bus at around 2 pm. The other children in the bus panicked and informed the driver about it, who immediately alerted the school authorities. The child was soon rushed to a hospital, but the child was declared brought dead by the doctors.
"Manish was brought dead to the hospital on Thursday afternoon. We gave him cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) but could not revive him. As per his symptoms, he died of cardiac failure," district hospital surgeon Dr Anil Goyal said. He also informed that his family has decided against conducting a post-mortem of their child.
Also read: 'Deaths every hour': 71 dead in Bihar hooch tragedy; Nitish cites Morbi, NHRC issues notice
Dr Goyal further informed that the rate of deaths due to cardiac arrest has seen a considerable spike after the pandemic. "Such incidents have risen after COVID-19 as per a study. It is possibly the first time someone this young has died of cardiac arrest in MP," he said. "A team of doctors will try to get an account of his family's medical history, which may give an idea of a possible reason that caused his death," he added, even as Manish's father Komal told the media that his son had no serious health issues so far.
Dr Goyal said that the doctors are trying to get an expert eye on the case, and have already discussed it with child specialist Dr. RK Mishra. "Dr Mishra said that cases of sudden death are common in newborns and in older children. But cardiac arrests are extremely rare," Dr Goyal said.
"There are several possibilities. He may have some disease that his family is unaware of. It could be a heart condition or the post-effects of COVID-19," Dr Goyal added.
