The medical examiner has ruled a cause and manner of death for a 17-year-old Spring Grove girl who died after becoming unresponsive during wisdom teeth removal at a dental office in Grayslake.
The Grayslake Fire Protection District and Grayslake Police Department responded around 8:30 a.m. on July 21 to Northern Lakes Oral Surgery and Dental Implant Center, 785 East Washington Street in Grayslake, for a medical call.
Grayslake Fire Protection District Battalion Chief James Weidman said a 911 caller reported an unresponsive patient at the dental office.
Paramedics arrived and transported the patient to Advocate Condell Medical Center in Libertyville.
The patient was in critical condition at the time of transport, Weidman said.
The Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office reported the victim was transferred to Advocate Children’s Hospital in Park Ridge.
The patient, identified as Sophia Farmer, 17, of Spring Grove, died at the hospital on the evening of July 24.
The medical examiner’s office initially said her cause and manner of death were both pending.
Lake and McHenry County Scanner was told that Farmer was undergoing a procedure at the dental office at the time and that she was under anesthesia.
Grayslake Police Chief Jeff Myhra said at the time that the incident was under investigation by the Grayslake Police Department Investigations Division.
The police chief said in July that the dental office had been “very cooperative” but that the investigation would “take some time.”
Myhra said Farmer was undergoing a wisdom teeth extraction procedure when she became unresponsive.
The medical examiner’s office this week — more than three months after the incident — ruled on Farmer’s cause and manner of death.
They said her cause of death was the result of complications of dental extraction surgery while under sedation, with a secondary cause being an ARID1B gene mutation and multiple neurologic abnormalities.
According to the Foundation for ARID1B Research, ARID1B is a rare genetic disorder that causes significant developmental delays and disabilities and requires most individuals with the condition to receive continuous care throughout their lives.
It is unclear how the disorder may increase risk when it comes to surgeries and anesthesia.
The medical examiner’s office ruled her manner of death as “natural.”
Myhra told Lake and McHenry County Scanner on Monday that there was no update yet on the police investigation as his department had not received the final report from the medical examiner’s office.
An obituary for Farmer by her family said she “filled our hearts” with “immeasurable love and laughter” from the moment she entered the world.
“She loved boating, camping, and she never met a dog that she didn’t want to keep,” the obituary said.
“Above all else, Sophie loved the Lord. She was active in her youth group and loved to sing on the worship team. She had a tender heart for others and you would often find her praying over her friends,” the obituary said.
Farmer leaves behind her parents, her sister, her brother and both sets of grandparents. She was laid to rest on August 2Â at Crystal Lake Memorial Park Cemetery in Crystal Lake.