Centenarian gets new lease of life

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 17

A 103-year-old patient underwent a successful stenting procedure at the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGI) here. He was the oldest patient in the history of the department and also one of the oldest in the world to undergo the procedure.

Dr Himanshu Gupta, Assistant Professor, Advanced Cardiac Centre, PGI, who conducted the procedure, said the patient was admitted with a complaint of chest pain and breathlessness. During examination, it was found that two of his heart vessels were critically blocked.

Dr Gupta stated that treatment of such patients was difficult and risky as the blockage became very hard due to advanced age and friable blood vessels. He said special techniques and equipment were required to remove such blockages.

“Kidney functions in this age group of patients are also compromised and extreme caution must be exercised while dealing with such cases,” he said.

The Department of Cardiology, PGI, was well-equipped to handle complex cases, said Prof Yashpaul Sharma, Head of the department who supervised the case.

Both arteries were stented in the same procedure. The patient did absolutely fine after the procedure and was discharged two days after the procedure with a very good cardiac function, he added.

Prof Yashpaul and Dr Himanshu said, “Even very elderly patient can undergo safe angioplasty. Hence, we should not ignore the problems of very elderly patients and should have positive mindset to treat them.”