Heart transplant amid Covid-19: 34 year old man gets new lease of life
- The patient had previously undergone an AICD device placement to prevent his heart from suddenly stopping
The patient, a resident of Hyderabad , working and living in Dubai since last 15 years consulted Dr Nagesh after he was he developed a constant fever six months back which affected his heart and resulted in a decreased ejection fraction of 15-20%. Ejection fraction making him bedridden. Ejection fraction (EF) is a measurement of how much blood the left ventricle pumps out with each contraction. The CARE cardiac team under the guidance of Dr Nagesh acted quickly and luckily for the patient, within a few days of his arrival, an organ donation happened saving his life. As soon as the patient landed in Hyderabad, he was immediately isolated and checked for Covid-19.
Speaking on the surgery, Dr A Nagesh, Heart Transplant Surgeon, CARE Hospitals said, “This case for us was a race against time. Heart Transplant is a complex surgery and what made the even more challenging was due to the time constraint we faced and the travel restrictions owing to the current global pandemic. The patient had a decreased EF and heart functionality of 15-20% since months and thus we had to step up the processes and get everything arranged including a donor very quickly.
“All protocols under the Hospital’s Mission Suraksha initiative were also in place,” he added.
Post the surgery the patient is recovering well and has been discharged from the hospital with a fully functional heart.