Man weighing 200kg gets a new lease of life after surgery in Delhi, Health News, ET HealthWorld

NEW DELHI: Doctors at the PSRI Hospital have successfully performed a complicated laminotomy surgery on a city-based 40-year-old morbidly obese Ayurvedic medicine manufacturer, who weighed 200 kg before the operation.

The patient was unable to stand on his feet for more than 30 seconds or walk due to spinal stenosis (narrowing of the spinal canal), which had led to numbness in his lower limbs and stiffness in the muscles.

A laminotomy surgery is done to release pressure on the spine.

A team led by Dr Amitabh Gupta, senior consultant, neurosurgery, performed the surgery by removing a portion of the bone and ligaments on both sides of the lamina in order to open up the canal and release the pressure on the spinal cord. Dr Gupta said it was a limb-saving procedure where an inadvertent delay to operate on him would have probably resulted in paralysis of lower limbs along with incontinence to urine and stools.

Furthermore, his morbid obesity and comorbidity – hypertension and diabetes – would have landed him in life-threatening complications like pneumonia, and deep vein thrombosis, if surgery was not performed in time, said Dr Gupta, adding that unhealthy lifestyle habits including smoking, unregulated eating habits with no exercise and genetic predisposition can cause such a condition.

Dr. Kadam Nagpal, senior consultant, neurology at PSRI, said the patient visited the hospital with complaints of acute onset of weakness in both legs. The weakness was so progressive that it got him in a wheelchair in a matter of five to six days. Before that, he was completely ambulatory doing his day-to-day activities. An MRI revealed a significant dorsal spinal cord compression at the spot where the patient was complaining of pain, he said.

The patient was further directed to the neurosurgeon, Dr Gupta for further course of action and management.

After evaluating the patient, it was found that he had a problem in the upper back. Besides, there was a compression of the spinal cord with swelling. “We counselled the patient about his weight and the benefits of surgery and he agreed,” added Dr Gupta.

The five-hour surgery ended and the results were immediately visible. Now the patient is on the road to recovery, said Dr Gupta. The patient was discharged on the third postoperative day.

According to the team at PSRI, he will be able to lead a normal life without any issues.