Nigerian Hospital Closes Hole in Heart… without Surgery

Barely a year after the cardiovascular specialist healthcare institution, Reddington Hospital , successfully performed the first cardiac catheterisation in the country, the hospital has recorded another medical feat by performing Nigeria ’s first devised closure of a hole-in-the-heart without surgery.

The latest landmark achievement known as Patient Ductus Arteriosus (PDA) by non-surgical intervention     performed on three-year-old child, Victoria Onuoha, in a procedure hitherto traditionally done with open heart surgery was done with a small device that is inserted through a vein in the groin.

The Acting Medical Director of the hospital, Dr. Olu Lawani, yesterday explained that the achievement was made possible following an intense collaboration between doctors at the Reddington Hospital and LASUCOM/LASUTH in a spirit of Public Private Partnership (PPP).

PDA is a congenital heart disease commonly seen in early childhood, which is a condition where the hole fails to close at birth for various reasons.

“The hole causes oxygenated blood leaving the heart through the Aorta to be pushed back into the right side of the heart causing lung congestions, pulmonary hypertension and enlargement of the heart,” he said.

According to Lawani, the first report on the device closure of PDA was observed in 1967 by Porstmann and had gained wide acceptance and used all over the world since then, “but this is the first report of using this mode of treatment for PDA in West Africa ”.

Lawani said the team of doctors who performed the operation deserved to be congratulated for their courage and skilfulness in pioneering the historic event in Nigeria and possibly the first in West Africa .

“I have to use the word ‘courage’ because a lot of people were very nervous about the likely outcome of this procedure being the first to be performed in Nigeria using fully indigenous expertise,” he noted.   

It is cheery news for sufferers of cardiovascular complication who patronise Reddington Hospital for medical attention as the hospital has completed arrangements to crash its charges on ailments to accommodate more patients who, due to financial constraints, cannot attend the hospital for treatment

reindeer:

Kudos to them, good marketing for the hospital.
I hope it becomes as routine as it is in the UK, patients just walk in and have this treatment and go home same day(done on out patient basis).
And i do hope they'll be patronised by Nigerian governments instead of sending the kids to India accompanied by 15 govt officials who'll collect $10k allowance each.All these after a press briefing of how the ''good governor'' used his humanity to help the poor child. . . .
Good feat on Nigerian soil, now just a little more encouragement from the government and our health system will take a leap.

Kudos! What we lack is government's support, not ideas, skills or man-power.

coded777:

Whether it is done via surgery or forgery is no concern of anyone, provided the operation was successful. Believe it, Goodluck has come to stay in Nigeria.

Evil Brain:

The headline is wrong by the way. Caordiac catheterization is definitely a form of surgery. Its not as serious as cutting open the baby's chest cavity, but its still a very invasive proceedure.

You have to pass a tube through the femoral vein (in the thigh), all the way into the right atrium in the baby's heart. Nowadays I thing they use an umbrella-like device that opens up to block the hole which means the child will be carrying around a foreign body in her chest for the rest of her life.

Its ridiculous to say the hole was closed "without surgery"  

bidemi12:

bet you they used super glue. . . . . . .

Evil Brain:

The headline is wrong by the way. Caordiac catheterization is definitely a form of surgery. Its not as serious as cutting open the baby's chest cavity, but its still a very invasive proceedure.

You have to pass a tube through the femoral vein (in the thigh), all the way into the right atrium in the baby's heart. Nowadays I thing they use an umbrella-like device that opens up to block the hole which means the child will be carrying around a foreign body in her chest for the rest of her life.

Its ridiculous to say the hole was closed "without surgery"