Newborn suffers 80% burns as incubator overheats, dies

According to reports, the newborn was kept in the incubator due to breathing problems.

With so many cases of negligence and carelessness involving babies emerging from various parts of India every day, it’s appalling that the no steps are being taken to ensure that a newborn and his mother are safe after delivery.

In yet another case of medical negligence, a newborn baby from Pune dies a couple of days after she suffered 80% burns as the incubator in which he was kept was overheated.

According to first reports, a short circuit on Tuesday caused the incubator to overheat and catch fire. The baby suffered from 80% burns and as a result succumbed to his injuries on Thursday. The unfortunate incident occurred at the Vatsalya hospital in Pune, India.

incubator

“The baby passed away in the early hours of Thursday, around 2 am. She had suffered over 80 per cent burn injuries,” senior inspector Appasaheb Shevale of Vishrambag police station told The Indian Express.

The newborn was kept in the warm incubator as he was having breathing troubles after birth. Suddenly in the evening, the family members heard a loud noise and when the rushed to see what had happened they saw that the incubator was in flames. The baby had already sustained quite a lot of injuries by the time the nurse pulled the baby out of the burning incubator.

A case was under Indian Penal Code’s section 287 (negligent conduct with respect to machinery) and section 338 (for causing grievous hurt by act endangering life) has been lodged against the doctors and the hospital.

Our heart goes out to the family of the baby and we hope that they get the strength to get over their loss.

Why newborn babies need an incubator

Here’s why some newborns need an incubator support:

Most babies need an incubator if they are suffering from any breathing disorder after birth or any other illness such as jaundice that needs immediate attention as mentioned in this informative article.
A lack of brown adipose tissue is the reason why newborns face difficulty maintaining their temperature, which is why they need a warm environment provided by the incubator.
Incubators also helps reduce fluid loss in premature babies.
Once the infant is able to maintain his body temperature and is stable he can be removed from the incubator and placed in a normal baby crib and go home.

[Image courtesy: Wikipedia.com]

Republished with permission from: The Indus Parent

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Written by

Avantika Kukreti

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