Rare surgery on a 14-year-old boy

11 September 2009

Cardiac surgeons at the Kasturba Medical College Hospital here performed a rare surgery on a 14-year-old boy for coronary artery bypass graft, using both arteries of the chest wall.

The 14-year-old boy, a 10th standard student, was diagnosed with familial hpercholesterolemia and suffered from severe chest pain while working in the fields and walking to school.

The case was diagnosed as hypercholesterolemia, where there is excess cholesterol in the blood, a hereditary problem in his family, in which at least four young lives were lost due to cardiac arrest.

The boy hails from Halgi village of Haveri taluk. His angiography revealed multiple blockages in the blood vessels supplying blood to the heart. There was a very critical block in the main artery of the heart and one of the branches of this artery was completely blocked increasing the risk of a heart attack. The boy suffered severe chest pain even while resting.
Surgeon Dr Shirish Borkar and his team has successfully operated on the boy. Borkar said the boy was operated using both the arteries of the chest wall, which is rare in his age group. The surgery was partly funded by Manipal University and Manipal Foundation, through the Manipal Hrudaya Suraksha Scheme.

These types of blocks, of the coronary arteries, are seen in older people, said Dr Borkar. Most patients succumb to the illness at an early age as the disease goes undiagnosed.
 
source times of india