bloodrayne
07-18-2005, 10:28 AM
Schoolboy Dies After 12 Hours Of Computer Gaming
Russia - A 12-year-old schoolboy from Russia’s Urals city of Yekaterinburg has died after playing computer games. After spending 12 hours at a local computer club, the boy fainted and was taken to hospital, where he died of a stroke eight days later, the Novye Izvestia daily reported on Tuesday.
Local doctors are sure that the boy was killed by his obsession with virtual reality. After school ended in May he started visiting a local computer club every day, spending 10 to 12 hours there and returned home only to eat and sleep. His parents did not prevent him from playing the computer games, thinking that their son should choose how he spent his summer vacation.
One of the club’s employees, told the paper on condition of anonymity that the boy did not visit the establishment any more than other youths. Sometimes children stay there the whole night, he said.
“When this boy came here last time, he felt quite good and played for a long time, almost for 12 hours. Then suddenly he fell on the floor. We called an ambulance immediately, the doctors arrived fast and took him to a hospital,” the source said.
At first the boy was diagnosed with an epileptic seizure. He lost his bearings, could not recognize his parents. A week later he could still only breathe with the the help of an artificial respirator and died shortly afterwards. A post-mortem examination has shown that he died of a stroke.
Alexei Sulimov, a senior doctor at the local children’s hospital said he and his colleagues were shocked by the death. They believe that the boy’s addiction to computer games did not let up even when he felt bad. “He was dying but could not tear himself from the game,” he said. The emotional tension resulted in a congestion of blood vessels in the brain, the doctor concluded.
The boy was apparently healthy and showed no signs of being at risk of a stroke. A special medical commission will decide if playing computer games could have led to his death. The Yekaterinburg city administration has initiated checks of all local computer clubs, claiming they may be breaking the rules of providing services.
Russia - A 12-year-old schoolboy from Russia’s Urals city of Yekaterinburg has died after playing computer games. After spending 12 hours at a local computer club, the boy fainted and was taken to hospital, where he died of a stroke eight days later, the Novye Izvestia daily reported on Tuesday.
Local doctors are sure that the boy was killed by his obsession with virtual reality. After school ended in May he started visiting a local computer club every day, spending 10 to 12 hours there and returned home only to eat and sleep. His parents did not prevent him from playing the computer games, thinking that their son should choose how he spent his summer vacation.
One of the club’s employees, told the paper on condition of anonymity that the boy did not visit the establishment any more than other youths. Sometimes children stay there the whole night, he said.
“When this boy came here last time, he felt quite good and played for a long time, almost for 12 hours. Then suddenly he fell on the floor. We called an ambulance immediately, the doctors arrived fast and took him to a hospital,” the source said.
At first the boy was diagnosed with an epileptic seizure. He lost his bearings, could not recognize his parents. A week later he could still only breathe with the the help of an artificial respirator and died shortly afterwards. A post-mortem examination has shown that he died of a stroke.
Alexei Sulimov, a senior doctor at the local children’s hospital said he and his colleagues were shocked by the death. They believe that the boy’s addiction to computer games did not let up even when he felt bad. “He was dying but could not tear himself from the game,” he said. The emotional tension resulted in a congestion of blood vessels in the brain, the doctor concluded.
The boy was apparently healthy and showed no signs of being at risk of a stroke. A special medical commission will decide if playing computer games could have led to his death. The Yekaterinburg city administration has initiated checks of all local computer clubs, claiming they may be breaking the rules of providing services.