A team of doctors from Dubai Health Authority (DHA) conducted a minimally invasive lifesaving cardiovascular procedure, for the first time in the UAE and the Middle-East region.

The procedure was performed on a 27-year-old Pakistani patient who was admitted to Rashid Hospital in a critical condition after a car accident, said a statement.

Dr Ayman Al Sibaie, consultant interventional radiologist at Rashid Hospital, said: “The accident had resulted in a severe injury to the patient’s aorta (main blood vessel in the human body), and thus the patient was in an extremely critical condition when he was brought in to the hospital.

“After a detailed discussion with the multidisciplinary team, we decided to go ahead with the endovascular approach.  Through a cut in the groin region measuring only two cms, we implanted a special device (stent graft) in the aorta to restore the normal blood flow and to retain the strength of aortic wall.”

Dr Bassil Al Zamkan, consultant cardiothoracic surgeon at Dubai Hospital, said: “Such a procedure is usually  performed for the lower part of aorta, in this special case the injury was located higher up, near  the heart, making it an extremely high-risk procedure as the main arteries feeding the brain and upper limbs were involved.

“However, we decided to use this advanced technology because in such type of cases, the risk compared to a standard open heart surgery is significantly less. The risk of mortality in a standard open heart surgery is around 30 per cent and in this procedure the risk is less than 1 per cent.”

The patient was in the hospital for seven days after the procedure and was then discharged, the statement added. - TradeArabia News Service