Srinagar, January 24: A septuagenarian from Kashmir got a new lease on life at Paras Health Srinagar with the timely intervention of the doctors.
The patient had multiple comorbid illnesses (Type 2 DM, hypothyroidism, obesity, CKD, anemia, and OSA) and experienced sudden cardiac arrest, narrowly avoiding sudden cardiac death.
The patient had received prolonged cardiopulmonary massage (CPR) at a tertiary hospital, but due to a lack of facilities, proper care, and the patient’s critical condition, the relatives contacted the Paras emergency department for the patient’s transfer. The patient was shifted to Paras Hospital on a portable ventilator for further treatment.
Upon evaluation at Paras Hospital’s emergency department by the emergency team and Dr. Muhammad Maqbool Sohil from interventional cardiology, it was discovered that the patient had underlying high-grade SA, Nodal, and AV-Nodal heart blocks, leading to the cardiac arrest and shock.
Given the advanced heart block, Dr. Maqbool Sohil and the Critical Care Medicine team decided to implant a dual-chamber pacemaker with ventilator support.
While dual-chamber pacemaker implantation is a common cardiac procedure, the critical condition of the patient, requiring ventilator support and being in shock, made it an extremely challenging procedure.
However, Dr. Maqbool Sohil and the team successfully and uneventfully implanted the dual-chamber pacemaker in this patient who was in shock and on ventilator support.
Upon further evaluation, it was discovered that the patient had developed Aspiration Pneumonia in both lungs with severe lung injury known as ARDS.
Cultures from the patient had shown infection due to multiple extended drug-resistant bacteria, which are extremely difficult to treat due to a poor response to antibiotics.
Managed by a multidisciplinary team, the patient started improving slowly and, after 15 days, was successfully weaned from ventilator support. On the 22nd day of admission, the patient fully recovered from all life-threatening medical conditions and was discharged in a healthy condition.
