The Army Hospital (Research & Referral) in New Delhi earned yet another feather in its cap by performing a complex non-surgical cardiac valve replacement on a 15-year-old boy on 08 October 2022.
The operating team led by Col Harmeet Singh Arora, Pediatric Interventional Cardiologist achieved this feat under the mentorship of Director General Armed Forces Medical Services, Surgeon Vice Admiral Rajat Datta, AVSM, SM, VSM, PHS, who is also the senior-most serving cardiologist in the Armed Forces.
The patient was born with a complex congenital heart defect (CHD) for which he underwent two open heart surgeries in early childhood, wherein an artificial ‘conduit’ was placed to supply blood from the heart to the lungs. Over time this conduit degenerated leading to progressive heart failure. To avoid a very high-risk third open heart surgery, a novel procedure called Transcatheter Pulmonary Valve Implantation was undertaken in which an artificial valve was inserted through a small incision in the groin.
This is the first time in the Government sector including Armed Forces that this procedure has been carried out. Col Sandeep Dhingra, Pediatric Intensivist & Head of Pediatric Department stated “This achievement by the pediatric cardiology team is a quantum leap towards providing advanced comprehensive cardiac care in children with Complex CHDs and ushers a new era in non-surgical interventions”.
Lt Gen Ashok Jindal, AVSM, YSM, Commandant, AHRR complemented the operating team on achieving this historical milestone and encouraged them to be always at the forefront in the provision of advanced pediatric cardiac care. Col Harmeet said “This path-breaking procedure will give a fresh lease of life to patients with CHDs and lead to avoidance of high-risk surgeries thus drastically improving the quality of life.”
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