A 19-year-old MSU student died Wednesday in Alpena after complications from a routine dental surgery to remove his wisdom teeth.

Computer engineering freshman Peter Welsch of Tawas City was sent to the hospital Tuesday after he inhaled a piece of gauze during the surgery.

"We don't really know for sure what happened," said his mother, Debra Welsch. "An autopsy was done and we'll find out from there."

Doctors were able to briefly revive him, but he was pronounced dead a day later.

"They did everything they could for as long as they could," Debra Welsch said.

She said she has no plans to seek legal action and declined to give the name of the oral surgeon.

While Peter Welsch was in surgery, his brother, telecommunication, information studies and media junior Andy Welsch, waited for his turn to get his wisdom teeth removed. His parents were at the store buying food for their sons' recoveries.

Andy Welsch said his initial reaction was anger toward the oral surgeon.

"I was incredibly mad at the beginning," he said. "I got mad, but I also used that anger to make myself a little more level-headed and started doing things to help my parents."

Both Andy Welsch and Peter Welsch lived on the second floor of Case Hall. Andy Welsch said his friends on the floor warmly accepted his little brother to MSU and helped him acclimate.

"They welcomed my brother this year as a freshman with open arms and took him under their wing," he said, adding that many people from the floor were expected at the funeral Sunday. "I've had a great response from all my friends at school. I couldn't believe it, the response from everyone."

Peter Welsch and his roommate, animal science sophomore Kyle Franks, were high school friends.

"I just made him laugh all the time," Franks said. "We did everything together."

Peter Welsch also was instrumental in bringing the floor closer, Franks said.

"He pretty much hung out with everyone on the floor," he said. "He always got us together and he always made fun activities happen."

Peter Welsch, a graduate from Tawas Area High School, was an avid soccer player and helped children with disabilities ride horses in 4-H Club. He also worked in MSU's robotics laboratory.

"Peter was a wonderful young man and an honor student," Debra Welsch said. "He was just a happy soul, and he'll be well-missed."

His kindness even extended after his death, his mother said.

"Peter believed in organ donating. Many of his major organs are already in use in people all over the county," she said. "In a tragic loss that was totally out of your control and you can help someone else, by all means do it.

"In a heartbeat, you've got to do it."

Paul Flynn, an oral and maxillofacial surgeon at Oral Surgery & Implant Center, 4124 W. St. Joseph Highway in Lansing, said death during routine dental surgeries is very uncommon.

"That's extremely, extremely rare," he said. "Certainly someone dying from wisdom tooth extraction is virtually unheard of."

Flynn, whose practice conducts eight to 10 wisdom teeth surgeries a week, said according to the American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Journal, the mortality rate for patients dying during oral surgery is two or fewer per one million cases.

"It just shows that no matter how innocuous a certain surgery is, there are always risks," he said.

Amy Bartner can be reached at bartnera@msu.edu.