Boy Dies From an Abscessed Tooth

MARYLAND-Deamonte Driver was a 12-year old boy with a common ailment for kids his age: he had a toothache. An infection had set up in the root, commonly known as an absessed tooth, for which an extraction can be performed for less than one-hundred dollars.

But before he could be treated for the painful problem, money would have to be saved in order to pay for his brother’s dental complaints, having had 6 teeth which needed the proper care of a dentist. His mother said that 10-year-old DaShawn complained about his teeth constantly.

The problem Deamonte’s mother, Alyce Driver, faced is a problem many parents face these days: no dental insurance. If that weren’t hard enough, the family had just lost its Medicaid coverage. Had they still been covered by Medicaid, however, it is a well-known fact that Medicaid dentists are hard to find.

So by the time Deamonte’s mouth was finally opened by a physician, it was January 11, and the child had returned home from school complaining of a headache. His mother took him to the emergency room, where he was treated for the headache, an abscess, and sinusitis.

The following day, he was much worse. Bacteria from the infection spread to his brain. The 12-year old underwent emergency brain surgery. Afterward, Deamonte suffered a seizure. He was once again operated upon, and the abscessed tooth extracted.

After two weeks at Children's Hospital, the seventh-grader began what was to be six weeks of additional medical treatment and therapy at another hospital, though his recovery was slow and did not seem to be moving at a normal pace.

On the day that Deamonte Driver passed away, his mother said he seemed happy but had refused to eat. After spending the day with her son, Alyce left to return home and tend to her duties there. Deamonte called home to speak with his mother before going to sleep on Saturday night. Alyce Driver said that her son told her, “Make sure you pray before you go to sleep.”

She did not get to speak with her son again.

Although the Driver kids have never received routine dental care, Alyce Driver said that even with Medicaid coverage, dental attention is just too hard to find. Dentists are not currently made to accept Medicaid coverage, and many do not want to deal with the long forms and pay that one must offer a secretary to manage such documents in the manner the Federal Government requires.