Doc says case is 'very unique'
A DOCTOR who attended to a 17-year-old polytechnic student after
he was injured at a taekwondo tournament has described the case as
'very unique'.
Dr Carol Lee Wei Hsin, Registrar of the emergency department of
Changi General Hospital, said from her experience and reading
literature, there were very few cases of a ruptured carotid artery
at a sports event.
CT scans showed that Mr Vincent Tan Sze Hao's neck artery had
ruptured, causing massive amount of blood to rush into the brain
and collect. Despite an operation, Mr Tan died four days later
after he was kicked by his 15-year-old opponent he was sparring
with at Kampong Kembangan community centre last July 5.
The championship was jointly organised by Kampong Ubi-Kembangan
Citizens Consultative Committee and the Greenville Residents'
Committee, and supported by the Singapore Taekwondo Gymnasium. Mr
Tan was a blue belt holder while the 15-year-old had a brown belt,
one notch higher than his.
Dr Lee said from the history and CT scan findings, the outcome
of the patient was unavoidable. His prognosis was very poor even on
arrival at the emergency department, she added on the stand.
Asked by State Counsel Adrian Loo if it would have made a
difference in the way she treated the patient if she were present
at the scene, she said she did not think it would make any
difference as there were many possible causes of the patient to
collapse. She would still need equipment, medication support of the
scan to help her reach the diagnosis.
State Coroner Victor Yeo is expected to adjourn verdict to
another day.
-- ST