An 18-year-old girl died on September 20 in the ICU of the Puerta del Mar Hospital after an initial diagnosis of “otitis” at the Puerto Real Clinical Hospital, which the doctors confused with “a stroke”, even leading to the discharge that she was not accepted by her parents.
According to a statement from the Ortiz Law Firm handling the case and to which this newsroom has had access, the events date back to the morning of September 18, when the 18-year-old girl went with her parents to the Center’s Emergency Service. of Especialidades La Longuera, in Chiclana, “for presenting the symptoms of vertigo and loss of consciousness with relaxation of the sphincters, with inability to walk and abnormal verbal response and right otalgia, pain that was reflected in the jaw, which he presented at home that same early morning”.
The examination did not turn out to be positive, but in addition to the aforementioned symptoms, she presented difficulty in raising and maintaining her left arm, which is why she prepares a report and immediately refers her to the Clinical Hospital of Puerto Real in order to complete the examination and rule out other possible pathologies. Already at the Puerto Real Hospital and she is treated “for vertigo and right ear pain by two physicians from the Emergency Department of said hospital center who apparently did not have much experience,” continues the text issued by the firm.
Upon arrival there “she is placed in a wheelchair in which she urinates again, they take a blood sample for analysis and request a urine sample collection, which was never carried out, and is then transferred to a stretcher.” the vulnerable room (unmonitored) in which he urinates again”.
When she was examined by the emergency doctors, they again gave her “a diagnosis of otitis, since she had redness in the right ear and they prescribed treatment for the headache and for the symptoms of supposed vertigo that she presented.”
Subsequently, and despite the fact that the mother revealed to the emergency physician who attended her the state in which her daughter was, “they discharge her with the clinical judgment of otitis externa after ruling out alarm signs or symptoms and prescribe treatment to start at home, ear drops and oral treatment to treat vertigo symptoms.
Seeing the situation in which their daughter was “with clonic seizures, low level of consciousness, rigidity in MMII, profuse sweating and not being able to stand up”, the parents were not satisfied with the discharge and decided to remain in the emergency room.
“An interconsultation with radiology was then requested, which did not consider it necessary to perform a CT scan of the head.” She was evaluated by ENT without finding alterations in the otoscopy, so the patient was referred again to the Hospital Emergency Department to expand her study and thus rule out central pathology.
Evaluated again, “it was noted that she had three-day headaches in the right temporal region and otalgia, in addition to a loss of consciousness with relaxation of the sphincters and that she had had a partial seizure and progressive deterioration of her level of consciousness during her stay in the emergency room” .
It was the new doctor on duty after the relief that, after receiving all the information “and a quick assessment, he considered that the young woman did not suffer from chills, but that it was convulsions and, after the pressure exerted by a relative of the patient who was a healthcare worker, finally decides to transfer her to the Radiology Service where they perform a CT scan of the head without contrast and, later, with contrast” which is definitive: “Thrombosis with stroke with a very serious condition”.
Upon confirmation of the critical condition in which he was found, he was administered anticonvulsant treatment and the protocol for transfer to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the Puerta del Mar Hospital was carried out and the neurosurgeon on duty was informed of said condition. transfer “the family is informed of the critical situation of the patient.”
After her transfer and admission to the ICU, she underwent urgent surgery as she did not respond favorably to the treatments.
The evolution after the surgical intervention was unfavorable, presenting a very serious worsening in the following hours and, finally, on September 20, he died in the ICU of the Puerta del Mar Hospital in Cádiz.
