- A 26-year-old came to the hospital with multiple symptoms: extreme breathlessness, palpitation, and chest discomfort
- On close examination, the heart was functioning at just 25% because of multiple blood-flow problems
- Doctors at Paras Hospital, Gurgaon, performed a Rare Bentall Surgery, successfully
Doctors from the cardiology department in Paras Hospital, Gurgaon, recently performed a rare heart surgery on a 26-year-old patient who had been rushed to the hospital with advanced stages of breathlessness, palpitation, and chest discomfort. On immediate, thorough investigation, it was found that the patient’s heart was 4 times the size of a normal one. The surgery replaced parts of the aorta (artery carrying oxygenated blood from the heart to the rest of the body). They also corrected defects to ensure that the blood flowing through this main artery is unhampered.
Dr Vishal Agarwal, HOD – Cardiothoracic Vascular Surgery, Paras Hospital, Gurgaon, said, “On careful study of the patient, Mohan Mehta (name changed to protect identity) we found 4 problems: the valve in the aorta was broken, causing regurgitation of blood (blood flowing back to the heart). This resulted in the artery functioning at just 50%. It also caused an enlargement of the size of his heart. Due to this, the heart’s functioning reduced to only 25%. The patient was on the border line, as 20% or less functioning requires a heart transplant. If the patient had waited another few months, there would have been no solution to his complication. Lastly, the restricted flow of blood in the patient’s aorta tube, which is the main blood supplier to the body, was stretched to the maximum. Rupturing of this would have lead to sudden death. The patient’s age and proper functioning of all other organs made him a good candidate for the Bentall procedure.”
The Bentall Procedure is an open-heart surgery that involves the use of a graft to replace a part of the aorta (the root). It also involves the artificial reconstruction of the three valves that ensure the one-way flow of blood from the heart to the body. In addition, it reconnects the coronary arteries (the small arteries that give food to the heart) to the aorta. It was invented in 1952 by Prof Hugh Bentall, a British cardiologist, who performed this operation with a colleague, successfully.
Elaborating on the surgery, Dr Agarwal said, “This is a milestone in heart surgery in Gurgaon. The patient was refused admission to some of the top hospitals in Gurgaon, because of the various complications, but we decided to take on the challenge. His technical diagnosis is Large Ascending Aorta Aneurism with Severe AS with Severe LV Dysfunction. We are happy the young man is off the ventilator, is in a stable condition, and will soon be shifted into a room.”
As with many medical cases, the exact reason of the problem is unclear, since Mohan was in good physical shape. However, doctors advise a healthy lifestyle with exercise, the right nutrition, avoiding junk food, smoking, and drinking, for a healthy heart and a disease-free life.
