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Sep 25, 2006 10:54 pm US/Central
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5-Year-Old Girl Remains In Coma, Condition Worsens
Diamond Brownridge's Organs Are Failing
CBS 2's Rob Johnson, Mai Martinez and Kristyn Hartman contributed to this report.
CHICAGO (CBS) ―
A 5-year-old girl remains in a coma and her condition is worsening after being sedated at the dentist office. Her dentist reponds to growing questions about the tragedy.
Diamond Brownridge remains in a coma and family members say her organs now have failed her. They say on Tuesday morning she will be taken off of life support.
"There's nothing the doctors can do," said the girl's mother, Ommettress Travis. "It's up to God."
On Saturday at Little Angel Dental office in the Little Village neighborhood, Diamond was sedated before being treated for cavities. Her mother returned and the young girl was unresponsive. She has been ever since.
The dentist, Dr. Hicham Riba, released a statement: "My thoughts and prayers are with Diamond and her family," he said.
"I have treated thousands of children since 1997 and many of my patients require intravenous sedation. I am board certified in pediatric dentistry, licensed for intravenous sedation and have always been in good standing with all licensing bodies. All of our patients are monitored throughout their procedures and never left alone," the statement said.
Another pediatric dentist says sedation is used on children just 5 percent of the time and monitoring the child is vital.
"We would never leave a sedated child by themselves," said Dr. Joanne Oppenheim.
For a third day, Diamond's family has kept vigil at her bedside praying for the kindergartener to wake up. The little girl has been in a coma since Saturday after a morning visit to the dentist.
She remains comatose and unresponsive at
Children's Memorial HospitalThe little girl has been on life support ever since she was brought to the hospital following a visit to the dentist on Saturday. Her mother said the dentist used three sedatives before working to fill two cavities and put some caps on Diamond's front teeth.
It was still a mystery Monday as to what sent Diamond into her coma as doctors worked to determine her level of brain activity.
Her parents fear she'll never be the same. They say doctors have told them most of Diamonds organs, including her brain are damaged. They estimate the 5-year-old was without oxygen for more than an hour after she stopped breathing Saturday.
Diamond's parents say their daughter needed two cavities filled and she also needed caps on her front teeth because she tended to grind them in her sleep.
"They did tell me they were going to sedate her, but I thought it was a regular dental procedure," said Ommettress Travis, Diamond's mother.
But according to her parents, the 5-year-old never woke up after the procedure, and it quickly turned into a nightmare for the mother of three when she returned to pick up her child about a half hour later.
"The doctor walked out. The assistant was there. They were like you can take your daughter, but you'll have to sit in the waiting room until she's responsive. They said she wouldn't be herself until Monday," Travis said.
Travis claims they asked her to leave the room and when the work was done, and she returned to find her kindergartener not breathing.
Travis said the people at the office couldn't wake Diamond and called 911. The little girl first went to Mount Sinai Hospital, then emergency crews rushed her to Children's Memorial.
Her mother has constantly been by her side. It's something she regrets not doing at the dentist's office.
"I know my daughter and I would've monitored her, and I would've knew when she wasn't breathing. I would've saw the signs," she said. "I feel like if I would have stayed there, I would have known when her heart stopped. I believe her heart probably stopped in the middle of the procedure and they did not recognize it."
The Illinois Department of Professional Regulation said Dr. Riba has been licensed to practice since 1997 and has had no past problems.
Diamond's mother said Riba called her after her daughter was hospitalized, but she wasn't able to speak to him.
(© MMVI, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)