An 8-Month-Old Baby Who 'Twitched' a Finger at the Funeral Hall... Hoped for a Miracle but Died Twice

Finger Moved During Funeral Service
Ultimately Did Not Wake Up... Second Death Declaration
Local Police Conducting Investigation

An 8-month-old baby girl, Kiara Santos, who was declared dead twice at a hospital in Brazil.
[Source=New Zealand Herald]

An 8-month-old baby briefly regained breathing during a funeral but ultimately could not be revived and was pronounced dead again.

According to foreign media including the New Zealand Herald on the 22nd (local time), Chiara Santos, an 8-month-old girl from Brazil, was urgently transported to a hospital in Correia Pinto, Santa Catarina state, on the 19th after showing signs of health problems. At that time, medical staff diagnosed that the baby's breathing and heartbeat had both stopped. Eventually, the baby was pronounced dead and was moved to a funeral home two hours later.

Sixteen hours after the death declaration, family members, relatives, and mourners gathered to begin the funeral service. While they were looking at the body lying in the coffin, the baby's fingers suddenly twitched. One of the mourners shouted, "The baby is alive," and rushed over. When he touched the baby's hand in the coffin, the baby tightly grasped his finger. Subsequently, paramedics who arrived on the scene examined the baby and confirmed that the baby's breathing had returned. At that time, the oxygen saturation level was 84%.

The baby was urgently transferred back to the hospital's intensive care unit 16 hours after being pronounced dead. Even upon arrival, a pulse was still detected. There were no signs of rigor mortis, which typically sets in 6 to 8 hours after death. Medical staff continued emergency treatment, but the baby was ultimately pronounced dead a second time less than 24 hours after regaining consciousness.

The baby's father, Cristiano Santos, expressed his sorrow to local media, saying, "It was a very desperate situation when (our daughter was first pronounced dead)." He added, "Then a glimmer of hope appeared, but in the end, this happened." The hospital that declared the baby dead stated, "We said the baby died 16 hours ago, but later, when she was transferred again, we confirmed the death once more," and apologized to the bereaved family. In response, city authorities promised, "We will provide the best medical services to all citizens," and added, "All medical professionals continuously receive training to ensure that people's lives and well-being are prioritized." Local police are conducting an investigation into the hospital that issued the death declarations.