Magura child rape: Victim’s condition deteriorates, suffers ‘cardiac arrest’ twice
The condition of the child from Magura has worsened further. She suffered two cardiac arrests - her heart stopped beating twice - on Wednesday morning.
A physician involved in her treatment shared this information with Prothom Alo.
The eight-year-old girl is currently on life support in the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) of the Children’s Department at the Combined Military Hospital (CMH) in Dhaka.
Her mother has filed a rape case. The victim went to visit her sister’s house in Magura on 1 March. As part of the investigation, the victim’s brother-in-law, his parents and elder brother have been arrested and placed on remand.
A member of the CMH medical board overseeing the child’s treatment told Prothom Alo on Wednesday morning that her condition has become even more critical. “She is now in the most severe stage of complications,” the physician said.
Her heart stopped beating for the first time around 8:00 am today but was revived through medical intervention. Shortly afterward, she suffered another cardiac arrest, but her heartbeat was restored once again.
However, her brain remains unresponsive, with a Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score of 3. GCS is a measure of a person’s level of consciousness after a brain injury, with 15 being normal. A score of 3 indicates a completely unresponsive state.
The physician also stated that during the attack, the perpetrators attempted to strangle the child, depriving her brain of oxygen. She remained in this critical condition until she was finally taken to the hospital at 11:00 am the next day.
As a result, she suffered severe brain damage due to prolonged oxygen deprivation. The physician commented that had she been taken to the hospital immediately and provided with oxygen, the extent of brain damage could have been significantly reduced.
The child was first taken to Magura’s 250-bed hospital at around 11:30 am last Thursday by her sister’s mother-in-law while she was unconscious. Later, her mother arrived at the hospital. That afternoon, she was referred to Faridpur Medical College Hospital for advanced treatment.
From there, she was transferred to Dhaka Medical College Hospital on Thursday night. By Friday night, her condition had worsened, and she was placed on life support. The following evening, she was moved from Dhaka Medical College Hospital’s PICU to CMH for specialised care.
To oversee her treatment, an eight-member medical board has been formed, headed by CMH’s chief surgeon. The board consists of specialists from the departments of surgery, gynecology and obstetrics, plastic surgery, pediatric neurology, anesthesia, pediatric cardiology, pediatric surgery, urology, and thoracic surgery.
Meanwhile, DNA samples from three of the four accused in the rape case have been collected for testing. On Tuesday morning, the suspects were transported from Magura to the DNA profiling lab at the CID in Dhaka.
At the same time, a DNA sample from the child was also submitted for analysis. Confirming progress in the investigation, Magura Additional Superintendent of Police Md. Mirajul Islam stated yesterday evening that the three accused have been returned to Magura District Jail.
The horrific incident has sparked nationwide outrage, with protests and demonstrations against rape and violence continuing across the country. Meanwhile, reports of rape and attempted rape of women, including children and adolescents, have emerged from six other locations in Bangladesh.