After allegedly throwing a drunken fit when a nurse refused to let him operate, authorities say the chief of neurosurgery at Highland Hospital was wrestled to an operating room floor by deputies and arrested.

Alameda County sheriff's Lt. Jim Knudson says 45-year-old Federico Castro-Moure was arrested on suspicion of being under the influence of alcohol and interfering with the duty of officers.

Authorities report Castro-Moure became belligerent after insisting on operating on a man who broke his ankles and fractured his spine in a two-story fall.

Two other surgeons determined the injuries were not life- threatening, but Castro-Moure insisted the man would die if he did not receive immediate attention.

The report says the doctor then "threw a fit" and began yelling and cursing at staff when they told him equipment for the procedure needed to be transferred from another hospital. When the surgical instruments arrived, a nurse refused to allow Castro-Moure to operate until they could be sterilized.

Castro-Moure threatened the nurse by punching his fist in his hand and took a swing at deputies after they were called to intervene.

Hospital spokesman David Cone says Castro-Moure was placed on leave while the hospital investigates the matter.