The chief of pediatric surgery at McMaster Children’s Hospital in Hamilton says deaths at the hospital following tonsil and adenoid surgeries are very rare.
Doctor Devin Peterson spoke in a video posted online by the hospital on Friday – a day after the hospital reported two children had died following the procedures and that it was launching an external review.
One of those children was from Norfolk County.
Peterson says the hospital is deeply saddened and offered sincere condolences to the patients’ families.
An accompanying statement on the Hamilton Health Sciences’ website said one child died the day after their surgery and the other died nine days after having the procedure.
It said McMaster Children’s Hospital performed 584 pediatric tonsil and adenoid surgeries last year and 5.8-per-cent of patients returned to the emergency department after being discharged.
Below is a video from Peterson.
Written by Matt LeBlanc with files from Canadian Press