3 year old Finley Boyle has died after careless sedation by dentist and staff in Hawaii dental office.

This is the saddest picture I think I’ve seen in many years and should be the one that comes to mind the next time ANY dentists want to sedate a child.  Sadly these deaths are more common than you may think.  In 2011 there were 8 that were reported, who knows how many were not.

On December 3, 2013 baby Finley was sedated at Island Dentistry for Children. Dr. Lilly Geyer was the dentist in charge, but who actually administered the deadly cocktail 5 different drugs?  According to court documents a “technician” gave Finley the lethal cocktail. Not surprising to those of us who watch this sort of news, questions have arisen as to the whether Finely actually needed the extensive treatment recommended at her November check-up by Dr. Geyer.

Court documents say when Dr. Lilly Geyer discovered Finley had gone into cardiac arrest, the doctor ran down the hall to a pediatrician’s office in the building to get him to come and perform CPR.

The AAPD Guidelines recommends vital signs should be monitored and documented at least every five minutes for patients who are sedated.  However, as was learned in the dental malpractice case in Syracuse, NY the AAPD guidelines are “options”.  Dentists on the stand testified under oath, the AAPD guidelines have little influence in the decisions many dentists make in treatment. (sorry, I tried not to do there)

According to the Boyle’s attorney, Rick Fried, only 3 notations were made as to Finley's vital signs and they went unchecked for 26 minutes after the technician sedated her.

I can only conclude Dr. Geyer and staff as careless idiots.

As promoted by the Raven Marie Blanco Foundation, every dentist office should be prepared to handle a medical emergency and recommends The Six Links of Survival. 

See the RMBF Public Service Announcement

However, dentists are fighting this “tooth and nail”.  State dental boards are doing little to protect the public and everything to make it easier for dentists to increase their income stream by offering sedation.

Below are several links to various stories, don’t miss out on the comments.  As you will see in the comments, the first thing people do is blame the victim or in this case the victim’s parents.  What is usually not stressed in the stories is that the child probably did NOT need such extensive treatment, if at all.

Dental boards: their mission is clear, but the execution—not so much title

One of my least favorite organizations, but still good points made.

Submitted by Editor at DOCS Education on May 16, 2012 - 4:05pm-Dental boards: their mission is clear, but the execution—not so much

Protect the public. That’s the deceptively simple mission of any American dental board. But while the mandate may be uncomplicated, its execution is anything but. Critics of board actions say they range from misguided and contradictory to baldly self-interested. Controversial decisions are increasingly putting boards under fire. Among the more common sources of complaint are
unfair and unequal treatment of dentists; failure to quickly address malpractice and the unlawful restraint of competition.

Perhaps nowhere is the board under greater fire than in Texas, where the executive director recently resigned. Sherri Meek’s abrupt exit followed a rocky stint punctuated by frequent dispute. In particular Meek was assailed for allowing board members to act as paid expert witnesses in lawsuits against Texas dentists; the practice posed a clear conflict of interest. Long-time opponent Dr. Mark
Stankewitz, a prosthodonist, used YouTube to decry the Texas board as “a good- ole-boys’ network…some dentists receive slaps on the wrists for serious matters and others serious consequences for much less significant offenses.”

Dentist-turned-attorney Frank Recker used the same language—a good-ole-boy’s network—to describe his own experience on the Ohio State Dental Board in the early 1980s.

Well, this should scare the hell out of every parent in Kentucky- Merry Christmas

From the front page of the DOCS education website:

Fox News report on Jenny Olenick’s parents suing dentist after her death. Jenny died in 2011

 

There have been 24 pediatric deaths related to complications due to dental procedures in the past seven years. This number accounts only for reported pediatric deaths. Shockingly, of the 24 pediatric deaths occurring within the seven year period, 11 have been within the last 21 months. 52% of the deaths have occurred since April of 2010! What once may have been viewed as a rarity has clearly become an epidemic. Wake-up Dr. Milton Houpt!

If you add the adult deaths, the numbers skyrocket.  If we knew the exact number of pediatric deaths and adult deaths I think everyone would be is shock!  Many are unreported as taking place during dental procedures.  Just last week I heard from a person whose friend’s husband had died in Florida just a few months ago during a dental procedure. She said the man had been dead for 15 minutes before the dental assistant brought it to his attention.  This never saw the pages of a news paper or a spot on the evening news.  There are hundreds more of these same kind of stories.  Mr. Milton Houpt ,the ADA and the AAPD do NOT want the true numbers told, it’s a $3 billion dollar a year industry!

Here is a memo sent out by the AAPD after the death of Jacobi Hill in Richmond, Virginia in 2010.

Nor does the DOCS Education program; a drive thru; weekend; three day seminar to teach dentist the fine art of sedation.  Used to help general dentists increase services and revenue streams.  A very dangerous one at that!

Someone has suggested it’s only a coincidence that the major dental agencies that set the standards and shape state rules and regulations are all located at the same address in Chicago: 211 E. Chicago Avenue, Chicago, IL 60611

American Dental Association

Academy of General Dentistry

American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry

American Student Dental Association

American College of Prosthodontists

American Association of Endodontists

and…drum roll please…..

The American Association of Dental Boards

Just a coincidence? 
The ADA owns the building and simply leases it to other organizations, no conspiracy? 

I say Hogwash!!

Another Child Dies At The Hands Of An 80 Year Old Dentist – 13 Year Old Marissa Kingery

Ladies and Gentlemen, it’s another very sad day here at Dentist The Menace.  Another child has lost her life due to an incident involving dental treatment at a dentist office. 

On January 3, 2011, Marissa Kingery, the only child of Amber McEwen and Jason Kingery was pronounced dead after two weeks in an unresponsive state at a hospital in Cleveland, Ohio.
Marissa started December 21, 2010 anxious and nervous about the dental procedure according to her mother. 
No doubt Marissa was on her Christmas break from school and excited because every child’s favorite holiday was just a few days away.  With presents already purchased and some under the Christmas tree Marissa Kingery was headed to the dentist.  In the end, there would be no Christmas for Marissa and no happy holiday for her parents.
That fateful morning, as any mother would, Marissa’s mother reassured her daughter and told her not to worry, “it will be OK.” It wasn’t ok.
Marissa’s father drove her to the appointment with 80 year old,Dr. Henry B. Mazorow.  Her appointment that day was to remove two baby teeth and one impacted permanent tooth.  It is not yet clear if sedation was really necessary. 
Something went terribly wrong under 80 year old, Dr. Henry B. Mazorow’s care.  An ambulance was called and she was rushed to the local hospital and later transferred to Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital in Cleveland, Ohio, where she was unresponsive and placed on life support...

4 Year Old Tulsa Child Dead After Sedation At Pediatric Dental Group, Tulsa, Oklahoma – Charles Keithline, DDS! 4 Dead Children In 4 Months!

Is anyone paying attention to this issue. 

I'm thinking no. 

I hope someone takes this up and does NOT leave it to the Oklahoma Board of Dentistry,  they let citizens down every day!  Dental Boards fall far short on protecting the citizens of Oklahoma, but it's not just Oklahoma!

Dr. Charles Russell Keithline III's dental licenses ( # 3942) shows he has been disciplined before!  Why is that not in the report?  Call the  Board of Dentistry (405) 524-9037 for more information.

Here is what I found:

Dr. Charles Keithline # 3942
Charges: practiced dentistry in an incompetent and/or negligent manner.
Action: 6 month suspension  and 5 yrs. probation. 

(I'm told it was due to drug addiction, but can not verify)
 

This death happened on August 14, 2010.  The earliest reports I can find are from yesterday, August 20, 2010, and  only from one source.  Why?

***********

Tulsa, OK
By KIM ARCHER World Staff Writer
Published: 8/20/2010  11:00 PM
Last Modified: 8/20/2010  11:00 PM

The Tulsa Police Department and the Oklahoma Dentistry Board are investigating the death of a 4-year-old girl who had been put under sedation for a dental procedure at a Tulsa pediatric dental clinic.

Akasmse Rose Tecumseh of Morris died Aug. 14 after leaving Pediatric Dental Group, 602 S. Utica Ave.

“I can tell you we are working constantly on this,” said Linda Campbell, executive director of the Oklahoma Board of Dentistry. “We are working on the timeline.”

She said investigators have been at the clinic going through records this week to find out how long the sedative was administered and whether proper protocol was followed.

Campbell said the Tulsa Police Department is working with the board’s investigators on the case.
“Certainly one death is too many, but we are looking at this to ensure there is clear and convincing evidence” regarding any potential wrongdoing, she said.

The primary dentist at the clinic is listed on the group’s website as Dr. Charles Keithline, a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry and a diplomate of the board.

Keithline’s attorney, Keith Sweet of Oklahoma City, said the dentist could not comment about the patient, citing patient privacy laws. Campbell said an associate of Keithline’s performed the procedure.

Only seven people in Oklahoma are known to have died after being sedated at a dentist’s office, she said. Many were ruled natural deaths after investigations because the patients were found to have had pre-existing medical conditions, such as heart disease or asthma.

Before Akasmse’s death, the last death linked to sedation at a dental office was that of a 6-year-old boy in Muskogee six years ago, Campbell said.

In that case, the investigation found that a pharmacy erred by providing the patient a lethal dose of methadone instead of the prescribed sedative, she said. The dentist was exonerated.
According to the American Dental Association, the use of sedation and general anesthesia has been an integral part of dental practice since the 1840s.

If properly administered by trained personnel, sedation and general anesthesia are safe and effective, allowing millions of people access to comprehensive dental care who otherwise would not get it, the ADA says.

The ADA sets guidelines for the industry regarding the use of sedation and offers continuing education on proper monitoring and airway management during the use of general anesthesia.
Officials with the Oklahoma Dental Association would not comment.

Read more from this Tulsa World article at http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=17&articleid=20100820_11_0_TheTul956938

The child was having some restorations done and crowns put on her deciduous teeth, according to Linda Campbell, executive director of the Oklahoma Board of Dentistry.
**********

Update Sept. 2, 2010

One story coming from the community is that Dr. Charles Keithline is charging the child's stepmother with causing the death of this child.  He is saying she left his office and drove the child around in a hot car for three house.  Of course Dr. Charles Keithline isn't planning on taking any responsibility. 
Just because a child has an underlying medical condition does NOT mean the child died of "Natural Causes" and the dentist is off the hook.

It's clear this is what has happened as the article mentions the number of deaths in Oklahoma and all were ruled "natural deaths" because of other health issues. How in the hell does this let the dentist off the hook?

And screw the AAPD or ADA guidelines and comments.  Remember they are the ones who sent out the "talking points" memo after deaths earlier this year to cover their (and their colleagues) asses!

I'm having big issues with this DOCS (Dental Organization For Conscious Sedation) Company, based in Seattle who delivering these "drive-thru" classes for dentists.  They advertise and have testimonials from dentists who talk about how offering Conscious Sedation is another tool to increase their profits! 

Related Articles:

Five Year Old David Liddell Death July 12, 2010

Deaths In Dental Chair On The Rise