Mohammed Anwar, a 24-year-old, resident of the Maldives, who was referred to Amrita Hospital, Kochi, following serious breathing issues after a bike accident in the Maldives, can breathe easily now.

Mohammed met with the accident in March 2019 and was admitted with serious injuries in the lungs and chest wall at a private hospital in the Maldives. Even after the surgery, he could not breathe without the support of a ventilator.

When his health condition worsened, he was referred to Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences (AIMS) in Kochi and thanks to the complex, rigid yet innovative Bronchoscopic procedures that succeeded over the open-lung surgery carried out otherwise. He was discharged.

Evaluation with endoscopy showed that air passages leading to his right lung had completely narrowed, due to which his lung was not getting ventilated.

Also, he faced a problem of the recurrent collapse of the same lung due to a tiny hole in the same region of airway stenosis.

Interventional Pulmonology team led by Dr. Tinku Joseph, Consultant Interventional Pulmonologist at Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences (AIMS) evaluated him and he underwent various complex, innovative rigid Bronchoscopic procedures in three different sittings.

After the complex procedures, his airways issues were corrected and he is set on to lead a normal life.

Bronchoscopic procedures allow doctors to see inside the lungs of patients with the help of a tool called a bronchoscope. The bronchoscope is a thin, flexible/ rigid tube mounted with a small light and camera that is inserted into the airways through the nose or mouth. They are performed under sedation, and there is no incision.

“Bronchoscopic surgery is a very safe and economical procedure compared to open lung surgery. The procedure was completed in three different sittings. Therefore, the patient need not spent lengthy days at the hospital whereas one has to spend more days at the hospital for open-lung surgery. Also, its treatment cost is relatively high,” said Dr. Tinku Joseph.