Amritsar: Vikramjit Singh (50) a patient from Amritsar, who was suffering from deep jaundice and a tumour in stomach and small intestine, got a new lease of life after a successful complex Whipple surgery at Max Hospital, Mohali.
Giving information, Dr Manmohan Singh Bedi, associate director general surgery said that Vikramjit was brought to Max in a critically deteriorating condition. He was suffering from yellowish discoloration of his eyes. He was diagnosed with deep jaundice which led to further evaluation of the patient and disclosed a tumour in the duodenum (small intestine). The biopsy was taken from the tumour to determine its nature.
The patient’s condition continued to deteriorate further as he started to pass blood through motion thus causing a dangerous fall in his blood pressure level due to continuous bleeding from the affected intestine.
All efforts to stop the bleeding failed despite repeated endoscopy and efforts through interventional radiology. Furthermore, his haemoglobin dropped down to 3 grams despite transfusing 20 units of blood. The drugs to maintain the blood pressure too failed to maintain the level.
Dr Bedi said, “The surgery was extremely challenging and complex. It required the removal of the bleeding part of the intestine, along with a major portion of the head of the pancreas, the lower end of the common bile duct, and part of the stomach, to control the bleeding.”
Given the poor health condition of the patient, which was deteriorating with time, the surgical option was opted for by the patient by understanding the high complications of the case.
“The major challenge in this highly complex surgery was the patient’s critical condition and administering anaesthesia to maintain stability during the procedure, ensuring the removal of the affected organs with minimal blood loss,”
Post-surgery, the ICU critical care team took over, providing the patient with blood transfusions and other blood products—platelets, plasma, and SSE—to correct any abnormalities. The patient was gradually taken down from the ventilator, and the endotracheal tube was removed on the fourth day after the reconstruction procedure. On the fifth day, the patient underwent reconstruction of the digestive tract, which was successfully completed, and the abdomen was closed. He began taking oral feeds the very next day and was moved to the general ward on the seventh day.
With a good diet and physiotherapy, the patient made a remarkable recovery and was discharged in stable condition on the eleventh day following surgery.
