An 18-year-old girl from Anjar town in Gujarat's Kutch district is fighting for her life, awaiting a crucial lung transplant in Hyderabad. Her ordeal began with the accidental consumption of a deadly paraquat-based weedicide, leading to catastrophic multi-organ failure.
A Race Against Time After Delayed Admission
The tragic incident occurred on November 7. However, due to reasons not fully detailed, the patient was only brought to the K K Patel Super Specialty Hospital in Bhuj four days later, on November 11. By the time she was admitted, doctors found her kidneys, liver, and lungs had already sustained extensive, severe damage. The hospital is operated by the Shree Kutchi Leva Patel Education and Medical Trust.
With her lungs failing to function, the medical team had to place her on an Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) machine. This advanced life-support system acts as an artificial heart and lung, oxygenating blood and removing carbon dioxide outside the body, keeping critically ill patients alive while they recover or await an organ transplant.
A Harrowing Journey on Life Support
The young patient spent a grueling 56 days on ECMO support in Bhuj. Dr. Aravind Chandrasekaran, consultant intensivist and director of the hospital's ECMO programme, detailed the numerous life-threatening complications she survived.
"During the prolonged treatment, the patient survived multiple episodes of severe sepsis, recurrent bloodstream infections including drug-resistant organisms, severe brain dysfunction and toxin-induced seizures," Dr. Chandrasekaran stated.
At one critical juncture, an infection at the site where the ECMO tubes entered her body spread into her bloodstream. This required emergency surgery to clean the infected area, replace the tubes, and follow up with precise antimicrobial therapy.
Recovery and a Persistent Challenge
Miraculously, amidst these trials, the girl's body showed incredible resilience. "All non-pulmonary organ damage, including kidney and liver injury, recovered completely. Renal and hepatic functions normalised, infections were controlled, and the patient regained full consciousness and haemodynamic stability while continuing ECMO support," the doctor explained.
However, her lungs were too damaged to heal. A lung transplant emerged as the only life-saving option left. This necessitated a high-risk transfer to a specialized hospital in Hyderabad, all while she remained dependent on the ECMO machine.
The financial burden was immense. Hailing from a poor family of vegetable vendors, they could not afford the prolonged ICU stay and advanced care. Recognizing the gravity of the situation, the hospital trust stepped in, deciding to bear nearly 70% of the treatment expenses incurred in Bhuj.
The next hurdle was the air ambulance transfer. Shifting a patient on ECMO requires a specially equipped ICU in the sky, costing a staggering Rs 11.50 lakh. This amount was successfully raised through a crowdfunding campaign led by Dilip Deshmukh of the Angdan Charitable Trust, an organization dedicated to promoting organ donation awareness.
The patient was airlifted from Bhuj on January 7 and has been safely admitted to the hospital in Hyderabad. "The patient has been safely shifted to the Hyderabad hospital and is currently awaiting a suitable lung donor," Dr. Chandrasekaran confirmed, marking the next critical phase in this young girl's battle for survival.
