Exhibiting high level of skill and expertise, doctors at a city hospital successfully implanted a pacemaker in a 100-year-old woman, Phoolwati Gaharwar.
Exhibiting high level of skill and expertise, doctors at a city hospital successfully implanted a pacemaker in a 100-year-old woman, Phoolwati Gaharwar.
According to the doctors, Ms Gaharwar had a fall from her bed and was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment. Tests revealed she had suffered no external injuries, but also revealed that one of the nerves in the heart was disconnected. This meant that she needed an urgent implant of a pacemaker, which could assist her heart in functioning normally. However, she had only 50 per cent chance of surviving the surgery.
“This required an urgent implant of the device which could assist her heart in functioning normally. Ms Gaharwar was then referred to Fortis Escorts by the attending doctor, who predicted only a 50 per cent chance for her surviving the surgical procedure,” said senior consultant, electrophysiology, in Fortis Escorts Heart Institute, Dr Aparna Jaswal.
A team of doctors led by Dr Jaswal conducted the surgery and successfully implanted a pacemaker. Allaying doubts her family had about the surgical procedure, the doctors explained the benefits of the implant and also indicated the challenges associated with patients of advanced age.
“Implant of a pacemaker as a procedure is our specialised area and, therefore, poses little challenge for us. What was challenging in this patient’s case was her advanced age. And what helped in her case is that despite her age she had no co-morbidities to complicate the case. The decision to implant the pacemaker followed the re-current unconscious spells she was going through on and off. We implanted a single chamber pacemaker and she is back on her feet and fine,” added Dr Jaswal.
