Man dies during heart catheterization in Petah Tikva hospital due to malfunction

A man died Wednesday while undergoing heart catheterization at a Petah Tikva hospital due to a technical malfunction.

According to Beilinson Medical Center, imaging equipment used to help guide the catheter stopped working as the procedure was underway.

The hospital said doctors immediately sought to resuscitate the 78-year-old patient, but he died. It was unclear what led the machine to stop working.

The medical center said it was in touch with the Health Ministry after the incident, with the sides agreeing to form an investigative committee to look into the matter.

Hebrew media reports said the Health Ministry had ordered Beilinson to halt all non-critical catheterizations, but the Ynet news site quoted the hospital denying it had received such an instruction and saying it would continue to perform the procedure.

There was no immediate official comment from the ministry.

“The medical team is upset and shocked from the severe and rare incident, and is trying to digest and recover from it,” a statement from Beilinson said.

The statement added that the hospital updated the patient’s family “with full transparency.”

Beilinson also said it was in touch with the X-ray machine’s manufacturer, which Channel 12 news identified as Dutch company Phillips.

According to media reports, the hospital had recently examined the machine and determined it was working properly.