Kerala doctors conduct 8-hour long complex surgery to remove blood clots in lungs

A medical team in Kerala recently conducted a complex surgery on a 49-year-old woman who had blood clots in the arteries of the lung. 

On facing severe shortness of breath and swelling in her legs, the patient consulted medical experts in KIMSHEALTH Trivandrum. A coronary angiogram showed normal blood vessels but her oxygen level had dropped to 80 per cent, posing a serious risk to her life. The ideal oxygen level should be between 95-100 per cent. 

In a CT pulmonary angiography, it was revealed that the patient suffered from chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension, a condition in which blood clots obstruct the function of the pulmonary arteries.

Doctors decided to proceed with a pulmonary thromboendarterectomy to remove the clots. In an 8-hour-long complex surgery, the patient's body temperature was lowered to 18 degrees Celsius and with the aid of a heart-lung machine, the blood clots in both the left and right pulmonary arteries were successfully removed. 

"After the surgery, the patient was successfully weaned off the heart-lung machine and placed on a ventilator in the ICU. A week later, as she was able to breathe normally without oxygen support,  was discharged. Currently, the patient’s oxygen level has risen to 95%, which is within the normal range," said Dr Shaji Palangadan, Senior Consultant, Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery.

The expert panel consisted of Dr Ramesh Natarajan, Senior Consultant, Department of Cardiology; Dr Bhuvanesh M, Consultant, Department of Rheumatology & Clinical Immunology; Dr Rohith S, Senior Consultant, Department of Respiratory Medicine; Dr Zaynah Zainuddin, Associate Consultant, Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery. Dr Subash S and Dr Swapna Sasidharan, Consultants, Department of Anesthesia, were also part of the multidisciplinary team.

Health