Pathologist: Moi Primary Pupil Died From Suspected Fear-Triggered Heart Rhythm Failure

By Suleiman Mbatiah

Severe emotional stress that led to sudden collapse and a fatal cardiac rhythm disturbance may have caused the death of a Grade Eight pupil at Moi Comprehensive School in Nakuru, a government pathologist has said.

Government pathologist Dr Titus Ngulungu said Moses Nyang’au suffered arrhythmia that triggered circulatory failure. He ruled out major trauma and said preliminary findings did not point to assault.

“I was requested by the family and also the DCI to do a post-mortem on a child. This child collapsed somewhere in the school, and I have done the post-mortem with the relatives present,” Dr Ngulungu said.

He spoke after conducting the autopsy at Nakuru Provincial General Hospital Mortuary. The examination was attended by relatives, teachers and members of the school’s board of management.

Dr Ngulungu said external examination revealed only a minor forehead injury. He found no bruises, lacerations or signs of violent force on the head, chest, limbs or torso.

“It was just a discolouration which was very minor. It cannot cause death,” he said, dismissing claims that the pupil may have been fatally injured before collapsing.

Internally, he said, there were features consistent with circulatory failure. However, he did not identify a definitive structural cause during the gross examination.

Internal examination, he stated in a press briefing flanked by parents and school management, revealed features of circulatory failure. But I did not get any specific feature to suggest why this child got circulatory failure.

He said a small patch observed on the heart had been taken for histology. Blood, liver, kidney and stomach samples were also collected for toxicology analysis to rule out underlying disease or poisoning.

Dr Ngulungu explained that circulatory failure can result from a sudden disturbance of heart rhythm. Severe fear or stress, he said, can in some cases trigger such arrhythmia.

“Circulatory failure can be caused by the heart losing rhythm. If it beats irregularly, it will cause circulatory failure, and that is probably why this child collapsed,” he said.

He added that determining whether emotional stress played a role would depend on investigations beyond the post-mortem, including scene reconstruction and witness accounts.

Family spokesman Vincent Joseph said the findings had deepened, rather than eased, concerns about what happened before the pupil collapsed during a lesson.

“This tragedy has hit the family hard, and we don’t understand how this happened. From the doctor’s report, we accept what has happened, but we have several questions,” said Joseph.

He said the family received conflicting accounts about the moments leading to the collapse. They want clarity on whether the boy was in class, outside, or involved in any disciplinary process.

“The only thing he was told, the boy has arrived, he collapsed. So, we didn’t understand the circumstances which befell, before the boy collapsed,” he said.

Mr Joseph also questioned a Sh12,000 post-mortem fee charged at the public hospital, saying the amount shocked the family and added to their distress.

He appealed for transparency from the school and authorities, saying the family needed clear answers to find closure and give the boy a dignified send-off.

The school’s Board of Management chairman Bernard Chweya defended the institution’s response, saying teachers acted immediately after the pupil collapsed in class.

“When they found the boy was unresponsive, they put him in a teacher’s car and rushed him to the hospital. That is the reaction any reasonable person can do,” he said.

He confirmed the matter was reported at Showground Police Post and recorded under OB number six after doctors pronounced the boy dead.

“We have CCTV coverage in the compound. If the police or the family requests officially for the CCTV that happened around that time, that will be given,” Chweya said.

He said the school does not tolerate mistreatment of learners and that any staff found culpable would face action handled professionally and in accordance with the law.

School principal Caroline Chebe said the pupil collapsed while standing at the front of the class as a teacher questioned learners who had been outside.

“Even before he reached that person, the boy collapsed, and he was at the farthest end. That is the time the boy collapsed,” Ms Chebe said.

She said the deputy principal noticed the boy gasping for breath and he was rushed to hospital immediately. The school contacted both parents and later sent an accountant to trace the father.

“The pathologist has said clearly that that is not the cause of death,” she said, urging the media to accurately report the medical findings and avoid speculation.