The Naples Prosecutor's Office continues its investigation into the failed heart transplant performed on a two-year-and-four-month-old boy, who has been in a coma since December 23rd in the intensive care unit of Monaldi Hospital. Prosecutors are interviewing people with knowledge of the matter and acquiring documents and materials to reconstruct, step by step, what happened before and during the organ's transport.
The investigation, delegated to the NAS and coordinated by Section VI (Deputy Prosecutor Giuseppe Tittaferrante, Deputy Prosecutor Antonio Ricci), aims to clarify whether and where a procedural breach occurred: the organ, removed in Bolzano by a team from Naples, would have arrived at its destination damaged after being exposed to extremely low temperatures during the return journey.
The box issue: availability, purchasing, and container selection
Investigators are also focusing on the availability and use of disposable boxes, as required by the guidelines for organ transport. These "latest-generation" containers cost approximately €7 each. According to the findings of Monaldi's internal audit, three such boxes were present at the hospital, but were left unused. On that day, a container deemed obsolete was used.
A detail that, according to investigators, must be combined with another element considered decisive: even a less modern container, they highlight, could have been effective if the correct refrigerant had been used according to protocol.
The Bolzano thread: who found the dry ice?
At the same time, the Naples prosecutor's office is awaiting the documents acquired in Bolzano by the Trento NAS (National Anti-Corruption Unit), which also include testimonies gathered on site. In this segment of the investigation, the goal is to clarify who obtained the dry ice and how it ended up in the possession of the Naples team: it appears to have been used in place of the traditionally prescribed ice, placed in the refrigerator, and then held responsible for freezing and damaging the organ.
The documentation from Bolzano is considered crucial to completing the reconstruction of the "cold chain" and operational responsibilities, from collection to storage, up to delivery.
Clinical outcome and next investigative steps
The heart was implanted, but it never restarted. The young patient was then placed on an ECMO, the life support device that keeps him alive while the medical and legal investigations continue.
Source EDITORIAL TEAM
Comments (1)
The article is very informative and provides insight into the heart transplant investigation. It's important to know how it all unfolded, but many unanswered questions remain regarding the choice of container and the ice management.