The dislodging of a tube he was breathing through may have been the "tipping point" in the death of the first child to die from Covid in Britain, an inquest heard today. Ismail Mohamed died aged just 13 after contracting the virus in March 2020, around a week after the first nationwide lockdown was announced.
The inquest heard a breathing tube being used by the child became positioned incorrectly in his throat - and may have hindered a ventilator which was helping him to breathe. The inquest heard from Professor Akash Deep, an intensive care consultant at King’s College Hospital, where Ismail was treated.
Prof. Deep explained that Ismail was overweight at the time of his admission, which could have contributed to his death. He also advised that the decision not to move an out-of-position ET (endotracheal) tube, which was put down Ismail’s trachea to help him breathe through a ventilator, could have proved important in the deterioration of his condition.
Prof Deep told the inquest: “[The dislodgement of the ET tube] could be described as a tipping point. Ismail probably died with Covid, not of Covid. The question is, if the ET tube had not been dislodged, would Ismail have been more likely to survive?
“It is very difficult to predict the chances of survival.”
Prof. Deep added that he would consider both the ‘misplacement’ of the ET tube and Ismail’s BMI (Body Mass Index) as contributory factors to his death, as well as the main factors of Covid pneumonitis and cardiac arrest.
Meanwhile, Professor William Bernal, a Consultant in Intensive Care Medicine at King’s College Hospital, said the strains placed on the Trust made it akin to working during wartime.
Prof. Bernal said: “We were not able to deliver the quality of care expected... it made decision making very challenging.
“Ismail’s death was very much on the upstroke of admissions.
“It was like a wartime experience, with physical and emotional pressures not seen in peacetime.”
Prof. Bernal added: “I wanted to again express my deepest condolences to Ismail’s family.
“Also, they need to understand that Ismail was heavily sedated, so he was not frightened or in any pain.”
The inquest also heard that King’s College Hospital had modified systems used to flag issues such as ET tubes being noticed as being ill-positioned from X-rays.
On X-rays showing potentially minor issues such as this, a red exclamation mark will appear on the X-ray, signifying an ‘abnormality’.
Andrew Harris, Senior Coroner for Inner South London, is expected to deliver his conclusion on Thursday.
