Major operations conducted through keyhole save 2 lives

Mariecar Jara-Puyod, Senior Reporter

Two octogenarians — a UAE resident and a tourist from Portugal — were given a new lease of life by way of a major operation and through the minimally invasive keyhole surgery in Dubai recently.

The UAE resident from Oman was identified as Ghadeer Ahmed Sabayah Al Madhani who has lived in Fujairah with his family for a long time. The Portuguese visitor who has been holidaying in the UAE annually with her family since 2000 was identified as Maria Madalena.

Both are 80 years old. The former went under the knife through the Rotablator (drilling technique) Angioplasty procedure for “heavily calcified arteries” at the Zulekha Hospital.

The latter underwent laparoscopy for a cancerous tumour in her mid-rectum she had no idea of until taken to the Rashid Hospital as an emergency case.

The attending physician of Al Madhani was specialist cardiologist Dr Fekry El Deeb who explained that Rotablator Angioplasty is a “procedure done using a drill with diamond chips that ablate (gradually remove surgically) the calcium in the arteries while it makes around 150 to 200 rotations per minute and which makes the opening of the arteries easier.”

Consultant general surgeon Dr Omar Al Marzouqi said of the Madalena case: “The patient came to the Emergency Department of the hospital. We immediately carried out several tests to investigate the medical condition she had.

The patient was fully evaluated and we performed several tests namely colonoscopy, CT scan and blood tests.

Additionally, the patient was seen by all relevant specialties to ensure we provide the highest quality of multidisciplinary care.”

According to El Deeb, Madhani’s medical records showed that the patient who underwent a coronary bypass surgery in 2010, has a “history of ischemic heart disease (narrowed heart arteries), diabetes, hypertension and dyslipidemia (abnormal rates of lipids such as cholesterol/fats and triglycerides) in the blood.”

El Deeb prepared Al Madhani for a Coronary Angiography which “revealed significant narrowing of the left main coronary artery, the left anterior descending artery, the first septal perforator artery with more than 95 per cent critical narrowing with heavy calcifications which increased the risk for complications and required immediate intervention.”

Al Madhani’s daughter, Asma, said their family took him to other hospitals due to his unstable condition. Al Madhani also needed dialysis: “I am happy to see my father talk and move around. He is much more comfortable now than before. We are extremely thankful to the treatment at and support of Zulekha Hospital.”

Al Madhani had been discharged after going through a “dialysis recession” post-surgery. He is being monitored.

Meanwhile, Madalena said that if ever she were to be subjected to a medical treatment, her preference would be Dubai and specifically at Rashid Hospital. Her choice was based on the family’s personal experience in 2017 when her husband, 82-year-old Rider Lobo, was also taken to for heart surgery, when they sounded for emergency medical assistance at the Mall of the Emirates.

Madalena said: “I did feel unwell before I travelled to Dubai but I did not want to cancel our holiday. In fact, I wanted to be cured in Dubai. However, I did not know that I had a cancerous tumour.”

In another development, the University Hospital of Sharjah (UHS), one of the leading hospitals in the GCC region, is being lauded for its recent discovery of a new surgical instrument and procedure for minimal invasive spine endoscopic surgery with less than one-centimetre incision. The discovery was made public through the publication of research papers written by Dr. Seungkook Kim, Consultant Spine Surgeon at Himchan – UHS Joint and Spine Centre located at UHS.