Inquiry after boy died during operation at Birmingham Children's Hospital

An inquiry is under way after a 16-year-old boy died in the operating theatre of Birmingham Children’s Hospital after a routine procedure went disastrously wrong.

Ryan Senior, of Redditch, was admitted for minor keyhole surgery on his abdomen that should have taken just 40 minutes.

But he suffered horrendous bleeding and multiple organ failure after a blood vessel was allegedly punctured during the low-risk op.

An inquiry is now beiong conducted into the death of the teenager who wanted to become a mechanic.

The tragedy happened on February 16 after Ryan was admitted for a laparoscopy, a low-risk surgical procedure that allows a surgeon to access the inside of the abdomen and the pelvis.

The teenager was suffering from a minor health complaint and was believed to be otherwise healthy.

Ryan and his mother Sarah, who accompanied him, were told the procedure itself would last just 40 minutes to an hour. Instead, the operation turned into a desperate battle to save his life after a blood vessel was allegedly ruptured.

It is believed Ryan was anaesthetised before a laparoscope – a small flexible tube that contains a light source and a camera – was inserted through his belly button.

His abdomen had been inflated with carbon dioxide gas to allow the laparoscope to move about.

But complications occurred after a major blood vessel was allegedly ruptured. Sources claim the carbon dioxide gas being used entered Ryan’s bloodstream, leading to rapid, overwhelming multiple organ failure.

Ryan is thought to have received up to 30 pints of blood over two hours, as the theatre team fought to save his life, but their efforts were in vain.

An inquest into his death was opened and adjourned at Birmingham Coroner’s Court on February 25 but an official cause of death was not given. However, it is thought a provisional cause of death may be a gas embolism.

Birmingham Children’s Hospital has confirmed it has launched a full inquiry into the tragedy, but a spokesman refused to comment because of ‘patient confidentiality’.

The famous hospital, funded by the Heart of Birmingham Teaching Primary Care Trust, has recently gone through one of the most difficult chapters in its 147-year history.

Last March a Healthcare Commission report revealed some patients were found to have endured delays in treatment and substandard care.

The Trust was also criticised for its shortage of beds, equipment and access to operating theatres.