Teen, 13, ‘died from obesity’ after mother brought takeaway meals to their hospital bed while they were days from death
- Child, 13, died from heart condition in worsened by a decade of being obese
- Eastern European teen emotionally abused by ‘hostile and aggressive’ mother
- Details of death in April 2015 emerge after case was discussed in Manchester
- Serious case review issued last year did not reveal if child was a boy or a girl
A ‘sunny and friendly’ 13-year-old child died from a heart condition worsened by their obesity which they had struggled with for a decade, it was revealed today.
The child, who was Eastern European, faced emotional abuse from their mother who was ‘hostile and aggressive’ in hospital, according to a serious case review.
The mother even brought takeaway food into the intensive care unit for the child while they were in a serious condition just weeks before their death in April 2015.
The 13-year-old child died from a heart condition worsened by their obesity (file picture)
Details of the death of the child, referred to as F1, have now emerged more than four years later after the case was discussed in a town hall meeting in Manchester.
But the serious case review issued last year did not reveal if child was a boy or a girl.
The teenager was said to have weighed more than 30kg (4st 10lbs) by the age of three and had a body mass index in the 99.6th centile.
GPs, a school nurse, nutritionist and weight management service all raised concerns or worked with the child, reported the Manchester Evening News.
But they often failed to liaise with other authorities and some were unclear over whether concerns about weight would be taken seriously as a safeguarding issue.
A nutritionist once failed to discuss concerns about F1 with their school or GP after the mother blamed F1 for their weight and described them as ‘lazy’ and a ‘doughnut’.
The child performed well academically, but their school attendance was poor and their mother said they could not take part in PE because of health problems.
The school provided the child with a PE kit, which their mother had refused to do, and also encouraged the child to walk to school and meet friends along the way.
The teenager was said to have weighed more than 4st 10lbs by the age of three (file picture)
However, the mother was said to have been ‘unhappy with school’s interference and undermined their approach by continuing to bring F1 to school by car’.
The child was also reported to have asked teachers not to tell their mother that they were attending extra health and exercise classes.
F1 was said in the report to have had a ‘sunny and friendly disposition’, but it soon emerged that they were eating 2,000 calories before lunch, including a takeaway.
In February 2015 the teenager was admitted to hospital and was discovered to have dilated cardiomyopathy, a blood clot and a history of morbid obesity.
They went home before being admitted to intensive care unit where their health ‘deteriorated significantly and there were significant concerns about them’.
Doctors ruled out a heart transplant because of the child’s weight and condition, and the report found the weight ‘may be contributory’ in causing their cardiomyopathy.
During their final weeks in hospital in April 2015, doctors also raised concerns about the mother – and criminal inquiries were launched but no action taken.
Manchester safeguarding board chair Julia Stephens-Row said: ‘It’s an area where everybody has to have those difficult conversations.
‘It’s not an easy conversation to be talking to parents about their child’s weight and also potentially their own weight. It’s that family environment.’