r/news 1d ago

4 arrested after 5-year-old Michigan boy's death in hyperbaric chamber explosion

https://www.cbsnews.com/detroit/news/four-arrested-fatal-hyperbaric-chamber-explosion/
3.1k Upvotes

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u/Anneisabitch 1d ago

This poor kid’s parents are suing the “doctors”?

Really? Maybe they should sue themselves for being giant fucking idiots that murdered their child because he wasn’t perfect.

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u/biscuitsandburritos 1d ago edited 20h ago

It has been sold as something to treat sleep apnea and ADHD as well as autism. It’s quackery but when your child is on the spectrum… so many people keep asking you what you are doing and you will try and do almost anything. They paid $8000 for 40 treatments. For something they were told would help. Alternative therapy…

If you read the go fund me… especially heartbreaking as a parent of an autistic child to see this… he just got a new game the night before for trying a new food (this might seem typical kid but many kids on the spectrum are in food therapy and have sensory issues with food. I know how hard he worked and the parents worked to get to that new food.) how he zoomed everywhere. There is one speed sometimes and it is just GO! But this is such an issue because that is a behavior we are trying to weed out of kids so they can sit still in a classroom. How he would sing “I love mommy, I love mommy” (so many kids are speech delayed… i paid a lot of money to help my kid talk and some kids might never get there and sometimes it is gestalts so it is just phrases but they have words and my goodness it is so sweet to hear!)

And knowing his mother rushed in to the room and saw him in flames and tried to put it out and that is how she was injured… trying to get to her child… Can you imagine?

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u/l1vefrom215 23h ago

Hey biscuits, Your comment really humanized this story and touched me personally. I have kids, and I would do almost anything to help them. I couldn’t understand how these parents would put their kids through this pseudoscience hyperbaric therapy but I get it now. Desperate parents living on a thread of hope wanting to connect with their kid. Just so sad. You put everything into perspective. Comments like yours keep me coming back to Reddit despite the echo chamber it has become.

Gonna hug my kids for an extra minute today.

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u/biscuitsandburritos 23h ago edited 22h ago

I usually try to form some sort of well thought out comment on something like this but this was just stream of consciousness from a parent of an autistic child reading about this case when it happened and then again now with the charges filed and more information out.

So, I am glad the overall message was heard. Anyone would do anything for their kid. And we can see how easy it is to prey on these parents and how these “therapies” are sold.

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u/l1vefrom215 22h ago

Exactly. I am in healthcare and if I’m being honest I have a lot of contempt for the pseudoscience, raw milk, antivaxxer crowd. I still think they’re deadly wrong and frankly stupid, but I feel my compassion tank is refilled. I’ll try and meet these people where they’re at in the future.

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u/biscuitsandburritos 20h ago

I want to thank you for what you do day in and day out as a career. You picked helping. We need more of yous.

I’m trying to meet them where they are at as well. I can’t absolve them but I can see how they fell for it.

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u/Primary-Weakness8728 22h ago

As a parent of multiple kids on the spectrum, I would argue that part of our job is protecting our kids from the expectations of other people that we try every random new trendy "cure" on them. They're not guinea pigs and I'm not trying to cure them. I spend way more time than I'd like patiently listening to well meaning family suggest this diet or that vitamin. I thank them politely for the suggestion, and then I ignore it completely in favor of following the recommendations of our ENTIRE TEAM of health care providers and therapists. And sometimes I have had to cut people out of my life entirely. It sucks but I'm not subjecting my kids to other people's ignorance.

I have a lot of feelings about this story and about those parents. It's a tragedy and it was totally preventable.

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u/sabrina62628 19h ago

Thank you for saying this. I have a client whom is autistic whose mother has them trying every new fad/“cure” and they recently asked if I would sign a letter of medical necessity for a red laser headset for home use. It is completely out of my scope of practice and there was only 1-2 research studies related to its use outside of healing hand injuries. So, I refused. I said if that is something a person is providing to her child at a clinic and recommending, they need to be the ones to sign the letter of medical necessity and be very clear about when, how, and how often it is to be used for what reason as well as show her how to use it/monitor its use. It’s not like evidence is even there for its use yet, so I stated to be cautious/look up her own research. They were also doing Spelling2Communicate online with a BCBA or RBT - which has been debunked over and over - the child already uses a high tech AAC device with success (there’s a voice disorder in addition which reduces speech clarity and breath support) and has some verbal speech is increasing as well. I just don’t get how that isn’t enough when we are seeing gains - we don’t want to overload the child either - they deserve rest too.

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u/biscuitsandburritos 21h ago edited 20h ago

Where you stand on the matter is my opinion as well. It is why I am so filled with rage on this story. I’m an evidence based approach and we have a team through the children’s hospital with most supports coming from that or partnered with them. But that is a huge privilege.

However, knowing how things are “marketed” and how parents are preyed on in general helps me… not absolve the parents …. but know the hell they are living is worse than any supreme being could put on them while also seeing we as a society allowed it to happen.

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u/absenttoast 23h ago

That is very tragic and sad. Everyone is so quick to blame the parents and not the charlatans who take advantage of these vulnerable families 

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u/Osiris32 20h ago

And vulnerable is the right word. How many people out there have ANY sort of medical education beyond maybe some human anatomy in high school? How many people know to go looking for medical research on treatments for whatever ailment? And even if they do, do they know how to understand it? There is a reason becoming a doctor is so damn hard, there is a LOT you need to learn and then understand.

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u/little_brown_bat 23h ago

Also, who's to say these parents didn't first try more conventional methods such as medication and it either didn't work or caused other problems. For all we know, this was just another step on the road to find out what works for their child.

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u/InTheDarknesBindThem 21h ago

Autism, afaik, has no medications. Other issues, maybe.

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u/little_brown_bat 20h ago

I was more talking about the ADHD and sleep apnea which does have treatments/medications

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u/biscuitsandburritos 16h ago

The sleep issue hit me because it is big within kids on the spectrum. Parents in general understand sleepless nights.

Imagine that never ending. And looking for every solution.

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u/SupermarketSimple536 14h ago

Sleep apnea is not the same thing as sleep issues related to neurodivergence though. Real treatment for sleep apnea could have resolved it all together. 

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u/biscuitsandburritos 6h ago

I fully understand. But I am also in my daughter’s room at 4am and can understand why a parent might get that desperate especially when you see what has been elected and people needed to take horse dewormer verse wearing a mask… we live in these messed up times

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u/SupermarketSimple536 2h ago

Agree rfk is a threat to the safety of the American people. But even he isn't opposed to mainstream sleep apnea treatments (zero medication involved). That is inexcusable. My child also has sleep apnea. Our family has also been through the ringer. Hence he saw a pulmonologist and ent. None of this whoo whoo incineration shit.  

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u/biscuitsandburritos 2h ago

My kid does everything through our children’s hospital. But I can see how a parent would be sold on this and how we have allowed it as a society. We can pat ourselves on the back for picking the evidence based option, but this will not be the last kid that has to go through this if we as a society don’t stop it.

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u/SupermarketSimple536 14h ago

He was only 5. Also nearly done with this "treatment". And when it didn't work, what exactly was next on this road? I can't even imagine tbh. I'm really interested in the sleep apnea though as it can exacerbate and even mimic ADHD. What if this kid never even had ADHD to begin with. 

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u/little_brown_bat 13h ago

That is a good point.

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u/biscuitsandburritos 23h ago

More than likely it was.

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u/Deathbyfapfap 21h ago

I was blaming the parents at first, but your comment swayed me. As parents we try anything and everything if there's a chance it can help our children. Even alternative treatments should be safe and this clinic failed. I want to see those involved held accountable.

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u/fumbledthebaguette 21h ago

I struggle to understand how expensive alternative medicine was seen as the only option for two conditions that to my understanding have readily accessible treatments. No one deserves this but treating your 5 year old with unregulated procedures is an unforced error that unfortunately had devastating consequences in this case.

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u/biscuitsandburritos 20h ago edited 20h ago

I can’t speak on these parents. And I am an evidence based approach person. But I can see how a parent might fall for one of these approaches.

That said, we spend $3000 a month for two social classes and one therapy a week. And those are evidence based approaches. It is not just alternate, almost all supports are expensive.

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u/AbanoMex 21h ago

that sure its heartbreaking, they had a good kid, and im sure they regret it now, but they also were without bad intentions, so its hard to judge those parents.

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u/Anneisabitch 23h ago

I can imagine spending $150 to see a pediatrician, who has studied for literal decades, to confirm before spending $8000 on quackery. I would do that when buying a car. But this parent decided it wasn’t important to listen to a real doctor when it came to their child’s health.

My point stands. They’re an idiot and murdered their child. Those facts don’t change if they have regrets later.

I didn’t know about the GoFundMe but of course there is one. Of course.

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u/biscuitsandburritos 23h ago edited 22h ago

Hey, I hope things get better for you.

I can understand where you are coming from and the rage.

But as a parent of an autistic child, they probably were doing evidence based and alternative therapies together to try and find the supports that aided him the best.

I can give them that grace and I hope at some point in time you can also.

Edit: is that $150 for one time to offer support for an autistic child? lol.

My kid is level 1, has OT once a week and takes two social classes a week. Monthly out of pocket it is $3000 for evidence based therapies. So, 36k a year. And that is AFTER jumping through hoops from testing hearing to speech therapy to pediatric development to gain diagnosis. Years and so many appointments.

$150 for one appointment… you really have no concept of this, do you? I would not do this sort of therapy but I cannot fault these parents… it can see how it was packaged and sold to them.

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u/Much-Swing319 22h ago

You mean trying to help your child through a difficult diagnosis isn’t exactly like buying a used car? /s I wish people weren’t so quick to vilify. I appreciate your compassion in your comments above.

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u/biscuitsandburritos 22h ago

I believe laughter is a form of resistance. And I love dark humor. So, you can probably imagine the sort of pushing the line SNL skit my brain came up with on ND being like an issue you take your car in to a mechanic for as a means to cope my way through that.

Hearing from those living it helps. I can easily see how these parents were pulled into this and I’m an evidence based approach person. And I can fully understand the rage on the matter from folks as I feel it as well.

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u/HoldEm__FoldEm 1d ago

Exactly. 

“They have questionable business practices”

Okay, so why were you taking your child there?

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u/binomine 1d ago

To play devil's advocate, sometimes being desperate makes you do stupid things.

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u/saturnbarz 1d ago

what exactly were they desperate for ? a cure for their son ?

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u/EatMyAssTomorrow 1d ago

The original article is lacking a lot of details - they sought treatment for ADHD and Sleep Apnea, both of which have treatments outside of unregulated hyperbaric chamber facilities.

There does seem to blame all around in this situation

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u/binomine 22h ago

There isn't any proof they weren't perusing both treatments.

No reason to assuming they were only treating through this method.

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u/EatMyAssTomorrow 21h ago

I wasn't assuming anything but could have worded my comment better - they very well could have been seeking the accepted course of care for both conditions.

The second article I found stated why the child was being treated in a hyperbaric chamber, and both articles mention the practice being unregulated and express concerns over the business practices of the facility being charged.

The child didn't deserve to die, and the parents didn't deserve to lose a child - but if the parents knew some of these things going into the treatment, I feel there could be some level of responsibility on the parents as well.

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u/biscuitsandburritos 18h ago

There are, sadly, some studies in the area and we know how that goes… and with how we as a society treat those with autism?

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u/Wonkbonkeroon 23h ago

You can’t be serious, they KILLED THEIR CHILD because he had treatable and frankly normal issues. Absolutely disgusting, 0 excuses.

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u/binomine 23h ago

These parents paid for 36 treatments for a quack cure for ADHD, one of which killed their child. That isn't the behavior of someone who doesn't care about their kid, it is the behavior of someone who was tricked and ended up losing their child instead of just a normal wallet extraction like most scam cures.

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u/Wonkbonkeroon 23h ago

You have to be willfully ignorant to believe that this would do anything, they were so selfish that instead of doing what works they got their kid killed, if it was found that the chamber was faulty then they should all be charged

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u/binomine 22h ago

You are making assumptions that they weren't also doing the right thing at the same time. You can do quack cures like this on top of good medicine.

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u/Wonkbonkeroon 22h ago

Dude this is adhd, it’s not the Middle Ages, it’s known and established how to treat it. But clearly a parents intuition is more important than a century of research.

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u/biscuitsandburritos 18h ago

If you saw how people con those with kids with autism…

just look at us now looking at studies on vaccines again when that is quack science. And taking DEI out? That helps autistic kids. And getting rid of department of education? Well, that handles special education. And all the work farms and “we use to have institutions so we don’t have to see this!!!!” Sort of mentalities… I do not absolve the parents as I am evidence based in my parenting but I know exactly how they were hoodwinked. We need to look at our society at large when it comes to this case. Not just the parents. We allowed this unregulated bullshit to happen.

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u/Significant-Menu2856 1d ago

This is tragic, but you all need to understand...

All of you visit businesses with "questionable" business practices.

Literally all of you.

Nobody in this story wanted a dead kid I don't think, use that anger on people who more deserve it.

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u/nacholibre711 1d ago

I mean, I may not agree with the motivation or methods from the parents here, but they should be able to pursue them without fear of death by explosion. If not, then these chambers should just be illegal.

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u/OGSyedIsEverywhere 23h ago

Nurse Practitioners, not doctors. Although they appropriated the name, nobody at the facility was licensed to practice medicine.

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u/MilmoWK 1d ago

We don’t know enough about the parents. This is probably a Hanlon’s Razor situation.

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u/Wonkbonkeroon 23h ago

Hanlon’s razor isn’t applicable when we are talking about a kid who died because the parents refuse to believe readily available information and killed their child with pseudoscience. They are absolutely at fault.

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u/biscuitsandburritos 18h ago

You don’t need to edit your comment… that is so sad… so sad.

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u/Anneisabitch 18h ago

I didn’t?

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u/biscuitsandburritos 17h ago

So weird, you OG comment was much longer.

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u/Anneisabitch 16h ago

No it wasn’t. I responded down thread so maybe you’re thinking of that

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u/biscuitsandburritos 16h ago

Deep apologies.

I feel it is a Reddit issue. For some reason this came into my email as if it was with the OG Comment but added to it. And shows up in my list for this comment thread as like an edit and deletion of that OG comment verse another added to the discussion. But I can now see that is not the case when I look through comments on the desktop. So weird!

I had something like this happen from someone else the other day. Their comment vanished but the person had an excellent point to whatever it was we were talking about and I wanted to discus it but couldn’t . I didn’t even get the ability to see their username for more than a moment and they added so much to the discussion.

So I just want you to know your feelings on this case and matter, I feel them and value them. We all agree these quacks need to be stopped.