SACRAMENTO: Another circumcision death

March 8, 2013

Another circumcision death

An 11-day-old boy has died died at UC Davis Children's Hospital in Sacramento, California, two days after being circumcised in the nearby town of Lodi.

According to his grandfather, Brayden Tyler Frazier had been taken to the doctor when he was a week old because he had been sleeping constantly and not eating. His parents had also noticed that his neonatal sticks and pricks had not healed quickly, and had to stay bandaged for two days or more.

The doctor in Lodi sent them home with instructions to monitor his condition and after two days, he was circumcised. It was later discovered that the wound had continued to bleed. He was taken back to the doctor, then to Urgent Care, then to the ER, and then transferred to UC Davis Medical.
He had "generalized bleeding" and an unidentified infection.

Over the two days after his circumcision, he went into seizures and a coma, and died.

A paediatric haematologist/oncologist comments:

Coagulation studies are not routinely done before many types of surgeries, including circumcisions. ... Also coagulation studies are not a part of routine newborn screening tests. Coagulation is complex, and involves the platelet cell and a couple dozen chemicals / proteins, to clot when needed but also not to clot in inappropriate locations, or excessively, and to additionally reabsorb clots after they have done their jobs. Plus hemophilia isn't a single disorder; there are two main types of "hemophilia" (deficiency of Factor 8 or Factor 9 ). But there are many other reasons to bleed excessively. However, a combination of several functional tests can narrow down the list of specific aspects of the coagulation system that need testing, in a given individual whose screening functional tests are abnormal, in order to identify what needs to be done to treat that individual's bleeding/risk. However it is more complicated in newborns: 1) Of the couple dozen chemicals, many are in different levels in newborns. For several reasons, some aspects of the newborn's system are hypo-coagulable [blood won't clot] while others are hyper-coagulable [blood clots very easily] and it generally balances out. So there are different normal ranges for results in infants. 2) Most tests of the coagulation system involve drawing blood from a vein or artery and simultaneously mixing it with anticoagulants (different anticoagulants for different tests). These tests also involve a relatively large amount of blood. Additionally the tissue factors, that trigger the initiation of the clotting system in injuries, are released from a heel stick and affect clotting studies. 3) It is however easy to do extensive or specific coagulation tests in newborns. When planned, the blood is correctly drawn at delivery from the umbilical cord, taking the blood otherwise left in the placenta... This can be planned when a family history [of haemophila] is present or there are other reasons to test. Surgeries / procedures that have no medical necessity, [such as] circumcision, should not be done.

JAKARTA: Boy with haemophilia bleeds after circumcision (!)

Jakarta Post
February 21, 2013

Toddler with hemophilia bleeds after circumcision

by Panca Nugraha

Haikal Syafi’i, a three-year-old with hemophilia, has been receiving repeated treatment in hospital for severe bleeding from a circumcision wound.

Haikal from Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara (NTB), was taken to Gerung Hospital in Lombok Barat after a mass circumcision event last month . He continued to suffer constant bleeding so his parents took him to Bhayangkara Hospital in Mataram, NTB.

“After receiving treatment in those two hospitals, his bleeding continued; so, he was brought to NTB General Hospital (RSUP) on Monday. We found that Haikal is suffering from hemophilia, a disorder in the blood clotting process,” the hospital’s Lalu Ahmadijaya, told The Jakarta Post, on Thursday.

Hemophilia is a genetic disorder that affects mainly boys, famously prevalent in the royal families of Europe.

“This should be a lesson for our people that they should check the health conditions of their children before circumcision.” said Ahmadijaya.

Speaking to the Post, Haikal’s mother, Sanemah, said that her boy attended a mass circumcision with seven other boys from their kampung on Jan.27 to commemorate the Prophet Muhammad’s birthday.

“After being circumcised, he had no complaints. But four days after the procedure, he began bleeding from his circumcision wound,” she said.

“Hemophilia treatment can be costly. Koate, for example, costs around Rp 10 million (US$1,030) per injection and Haikal needs three injections to stop his bleeding,” Ahmadijaya said, adding that Haikal’s treatment would be covered by the government-fund health coverage scheme Jamkesmas. (ebf)

VANCOUVER: Ryan White was circumcised then tested for haemophilia

The Ball State Daily News
April 28, 2012

Mother of AIDS martyr Ryan White speaks at Pruis Hall

By Haylee Brannon

Jeanne White-Ginder, mother of Ryan White who died in 1990 from AIDS, spoke Thursday night for an event hosted by Project Posi(+)ive Empowerment, an immersive learning class at Ball State.

...

“I’m just a mom, not a professional speaker,” the Kokomo, Ind., native said. “All I ever wanted to be was a mom and when I got pregnant I just couldn’t wait.”

“White was born 22 and a half inches long, so skinny, but had the biggest feet so we hoped that he would be a basketball player,” she laughed. “That was short lived because he was circumcised and the bleeding wouldn’t stop.”

Shortly after White was circumcised the doctors knew something was wrong. The bleeding did not stop even after stitches were applied. He was immediately tested and hours later the doctors informed White’s mother that he suffered from severe hemophilia.

[Why the HELL is any baby ever circumcised before he is tested for haemophilia? Is any other surgery done without that test? Once again, circumcision gets a free pass.]

... After being diagnosed with hemophilia, White was given drugs created from plasma of non-hemophiliacs that had not yet been approved by the FDA.

“Little did we even realize the drug that was supposed to be saving his life was actually going to be the drug that took his life,” White-Ginder said.

...