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Sad news has emerged from the western Russian town of Yekaterinburg, where a young boy died after having an epileptic seizure during a 12-hour gaming session, which had been a reward for getting good grades at school. The child, identified only as Sergei, couldn’t recognise his parents, and had trouble breathing following the seizure. He was put on a ventilator after being taken to hospital, where unfortunately his condition did not improve and he died 8 days later from a stroke.
Alexei Sulimov, a senior doctor at the hospital, was left in no doubt about what caused the tragedy. With a comment that will have Daily Mail readers writing to their MPs, Sulimov commented, “He was dying but could not tear himself from the game,” adding that colleagues were shocked by the case. “Brain haemorrhage took place due to sustained emotional stimulation of the brain. The boy had overworked. …”
“This was the result of emotional stress because he was obsessed with the games. Apart from his obsession with computer games he was a healthy kid and there was no reason why he should not have had a long and healthy life.”
Whilst no doubt a sad event, and our condolences go out to Sergei’s family, we at Pro-G feel that once more games are being made the scapegoat, rather than looking at the more pressing concern of why a 12-year old boy was allowed to play for such a long period. And, whilst games can potentially trigger seizures, so can many forms of entertainment. Plus, to be fair, many games now place warnings in manuals, sometimes also on-screen.
