New Details Emerge About 9-Year-Old Girl Who Died After Being Placed Under Anesthesia for Dental Procedure (2025)

• Silvanna Moreno died hours after she underwent anesthesia for a dental procedure in California, officials said.
• "Family checked on her throughout the day to later find her unresponsive in bed and called 911 for emergency services assistance," the San Diego County Medical Examiner's Office said, noting she later died at a hospital
• The third grader "was the sunshine in every room she entered, always greeting staff and classmates with a big smile and an even bigger hug," a GoFundMe organizer wrote

Authorities have released new details about a 9-year-old girl who died after undergoing anesthesia for a dental procedure.

Silvanna Moreno, a Southern California third-grader, died hours after the procedure, which was performed under anesthesia at Dreamtime Dentistry in Vista on March 18, according to the San Diego County Medical Examiner's Office.

“She was the sunshine in every room she entered, always greeting staff and classmates with a big smile and an even bigger hug,” a GoFundMe organizer wrote of the Sherman Elementary School student. “Her friends describe her as kind, caring, and always happy, a true friend to everyone she met.”

The organizer added, “She was also an amazing big sister to Roberto, showing love and devotion every day.”

Moreno’s death “occurred several hours after her completed dental procedure,” Dr. Ryan Watkins, a licensed dentist at the facility trained in anesthesiology, said in a statement obtained by PEOPLE.

"The patient was referred to our office for dental treatment under general anesthesia due to her young age and acute situational anxiety," Watkins added. "Throughout the procedure, she was continuously monitored by ourdentist anesthesiologist ... with no complications observed."

The medical examiner's office said the girl was moved to a recovery room, then discharged from the facility and remained asleep on the ride home.

But the doctor's office tells PEOPLE on Tuesday, April 1, that the girl was awake in the recovery room and that her mom "helped her stand up and she was wheeled out the back [and] stood up."

However, the medical examiner's office said that after leaving the facility, "she stayed sleeping and was transitioned into her bed at home." They added, "Family checked on her throughout the day to later find her unresponsive in bed and called 911 for emergency services assistance."

Moreno was transported to Rady Children's Hospital in San Diego, where she was later pronounced dead shortly before 6 p.m. local time, the agency said. Her cause of death is pending.

On Wednesday, April 2, a representative with the San Diego Police Department told PEOPLE that its Child Abuse Unitis investigating the case.

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Now, as the Moreno family mourns the 9-year-old's death, the organizer said they're grateful for the continued outpouring of support.

“Thank you for keeping Silvanna and her family in your thoughts and prayers,” they wrote in the GoFundMe. “Your generosity means the world during this incredibly difficult time.”

Moreno is survived by her mother, Itzel de Jesus; father, Roberto Moreno; and siblings, Isis, Fabian and Roberto Nicolas, as well as extended family, according to the organizer.

Funeral services for Moreno were held on Wednesday, March 26.