Cardiac Surgeons and Specialists save life of a heart patient by inducing hypothermia
A team of cardiac consultants and specialists from Sheikh Khalifa Medical City (SKMC), managed by Cleveland Clinic, and Tawam Hospital, in affiliation with Johns Hopkins Medicine, have saved the life of a 32 year old local man in a medical collaboration which involved inducing a deep hypothermia prior to surgery.
Therapeutic hypothermia is a procedure that is often used to stop brain damage in patients who suffer cardiac arrest, where the treatment involves lowering a patient's body temperature to slow the brain's demand for oxygen, thereby preventing damage to cells.
The cardiac patient, who had earlier undergone two serious heart operations to replace damaged valves elsewhere, was transferred by an emergency helicopter from Tawam Hospital to SKMC after being diagnosed with a huge false aneurysm (a pocket of blood that has leaked outside of the blood vessel).
Dr. Husam Ouda, Consultant Chairman of Medicine and Division Head of Cardiology - Internal Medicine, Tawam Hospital commented, "The patient was in a critical condition when he was admitted to Tawam's Emergency Room (ER), so bad that no one thought he would survive. He was suffering from severe chest pain and difficulty in breathing. It is a miracle he lived, and the quick diagnosis at Tawam was crucial to his treatment as well as the rapid transfer to SKMC. The treatment this patient received was a perfect example of SEHA's facilities working seamlessly together to save lives".
Dr. Norbert Augustin, Chairman of Cardiac Sciences Institute at SKMC stated, "The patient arrived to SKMC Emergency Department as an emergency case from Tawam Hospital with an exceptionally large false aneurysm, around 8 centimetres in diameter, caused by a previous aortic incision and his condition was critical. The patient developed a cardiogenic shock and was immediately sent to the operation room at SKMC. In his case the opening of the chest could cause a major bleeding because the aneurysm was already part of the thin sternum, therefore, we made the decision to connect the heart lung machine via the groin vessels to cool the body and induce a deep hypothermia before opening the chest." "In most cases where hypothermia is induced, the body temperature will not drop below 32-34 degrees Celsius as the heart lung machine is continuously running. This case was rare as a deep hypothermia was induced, cooling the body temperature to approximately 20 degrees Celsius, almost half of normal body temperature. This is a very rare clinical practice employed to provide a bloodless surgical field for complex surgeries. Physicians were then able to halt the ECC, enabling them to open the chest completely and commence emergency cardiac surgery," Dr. Augustin added.
During the complicated open-heart surgery, the surgeons were able to obtain access to the eight by ten centimetre false aneurysm and its source; a two by one centimetre leak from the previous aortic incision. The surgeons restarted the ECC again while replacing the fragile ascending aorta with a prosthesis. The patient was then weaned off the ECC after slowly warming' back to the normal body temperature.
After an uncomplicated initial recovery period, the patient was transferred back to Tawam Hospital in very good condition, with intact brain activity. Commenting on the patient case after the surgery while staying at Tawam Hospital for follow up treatment, Tawam's Dr. Ouda added, "The patient made an incredibly quick initial recovery. He is well and undergoing some rehabilitation, coming in for outpatient treatment every six weeks".
Dr. Ali Abdulkarim Al Obaidli, on behalf of Abu Dhabi Health Services Company PJSC (SEHA), which owns and operates both hospitals said, "The patient in this emergency case was very fortunate that his treatment was in the hands of two of the best cardiac teams in the UAE with the world-class equipment and services of the SEHA HealthSystem behind them. SEHA would like to take this opportunity to thank the outstanding professionals at both Tawam Hospital and SKMC; this man is alive today because of the efficient co-operation between the two SEHA facilities and their effective diagnosis, treatment and communication".
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