Recently, Mrs. Deng from Ningbo made a lengthy post and shared a video on a social media platform, exposing the real name of her 5-month-old daughter who passed away during a minimally invasive heart surgery at the Ningbo University affiliated Women and Children’s Hospital. She raised concerns regarding the surgical process and the doctors involved. The topic labeled as “Ningbo Women and Children” soared to the top of trending topics on Weibo on November 17. Following the online attention, the hospital stated that the doctor involved has suspended clinic operations and will cooperate with the family for their rights protection.
Mrs. Deng narrated that her baby was a premature infant born a month early with a heart “atrial septal defect.” After an examination at the Ningbo University affiliated Women and Children’s Hospital, surgery was decided as the course of action.
Medical records indicated that on November 14, the infant underwent surgery under general anesthesia, and her condition was assessed as critical with complications. The planned surgery time communicated was 2.5 to 3 hours, yet the actual operation lasted for 7 hours and 10 minutes, spending 9 hours in the operating room.
After several hours of surgery, the baby girl passed away that evening, leaving her parents with doubts about the surgical process and the doctors involved. At the time of her passing, she had tears in her eyes and her mouth was not tightly closed.
In a circulating video, a woman identifying herself as Deng Rongrong accused Chen Xianjun, the head of the Cardiology Department at Ningbo Women and Children’s Hospital, of causing the death of her 5-month-old daughter, Xu Luoxi.
According to Deng Rongrong’s account, her daughter, born premature by a month, was placed in an incubator, and the family regularly sought treatment at Ningbo’s most authoritative children’s designated hospital, Ningbo Women and Children’s Hospital.
During a routine check-up on November 11, an echocardiogram revealed the atrial septal defect with two secondary holes of 3mm and 7mm due to premature birth. After researching online, the family learned that most children would likely self-heal after a week. They consulted with Dr. Chen Xianjun at the Cardiology Department that day and expressed concerns, inquiring about waiting for the child to grow older before pursuing general anesthesia surgery for safety.
Chen Xianjun explained that with two large holes, the chances of self-healing were low, affecting the lungs, feeding, growth development, and brain development. Meeting the surgical criteria, early surgery was recommended for better outcomes. The minimally invasive procedure under the armpit with an operation time of 2.5-3 hours would ensure no recurrence and permanent closure of the defect. The surgical risk probability was one in two hundred with manageable difficulty.
On November 14, the surgery started at 9:25 a.m. and ended at 4:37 p.m. The entire anesthesia process lasted for 7 hours and 12 minutes, with preparation beginning at 7:48 a.m., leading to a total duration of nearly 9 hours, almost three times longer than the communicated time.
In the afternoon after 1 p.m., as the surgery prolonged without finishing, Deng Rongrong’s family grew anxious. Between 3 p.m. and 4 p.m., they made four calls to the hospital requesting to meet with the medical team in charge to inquire about the surgery’s progress without success.
Around 4 p.m., a doctor summoned the family for a discussion, revealing that the surgery was not progressing smoothly. When Deng Rongrong asked about the risk to life, the response was hesitant, indicating a 50-50 chance.
During the 7-hour anesthesia, the hospital concealed two critical points from the family: the surgery encountered complications around 1 p.m., leading to a second reoperation, at a time when the child’s condition deteriorated significantly.
After the surgery at 4:37 p.m., the child emerged from the operating room with severe facial swelling, tubes inserted throughout her body, and another doctor misleadingly informed the family that the surgery was successful. However, Deng Rongrong’s instinct told her that her daughter was in critical condition. She accompanied the child to the monitoring room, where she observed her daughter’s pale, bloody face with unshed tears. The hospital informed the family of the child’s death at 10:03 p.m.
Deng Rongrong and her family raised three main concerns:
1. They requested to view videos of the surgical and emergency treatment rooms during the operation. The hospital claimed there were none.
2. The information provided to the family regarding the risks during preoperative discussions did not match the actual results, with Chen Xianjun acknowledging that the in-surgery accident exceeded his predictions.
3. Between the child’s death and 4 a.m., with the family highly emotional, no medical staff initiated communication with them. A hospital manager was later questioned by the family, asking if any information or comfort had been provided from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m., to which he remained silent for three minutes.
This incident sparked widespread attention online, reaching the top trending spot on Weibo.
Under mounting public pressure, on November 17, staff at the Ningbo University affiliated Women and Children’s Hospital responded by initiating an investigation into Dr. Chen and suspending his clinic operations. They assured cooperation with the family for their legal rights. If medical negligence by the doctor is proven, appropriate actions will be taken based on the investigation results, and the doctor will be held accountable for the consequences.