Endovascular surgery restores smile of 12-yr-old

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, July 17

12-year-old Tejaswini (name changed) and her parents were worried as ugly scars on her face which had been operated twice earlier, started to bleed.

Dr Harinder Singh Bedi, chairman of Cardio Vascular Endovascular and Thoracic Surgery of Ludhiana Mediways Hospital, said endovascular surgery saved the girls face from ugly scars.

Diagnosis revealed that the girl had a large recurrent ‘venous malformation’ in her left cheek with bleeding. Such a lesion cannot be adequately treated with conventional surgery as it will grow back.

Her CT and MRI showed growth to be extensive and also involved surrounding tissues. A relatively new procedure called endovascular duplex and flouro guided sclerotherapy was planned, the doctor said.

Dr Bedi said the process involves careful injection of a sclerosing agent exactly into affected areas. This requires a high degree of expertise and a precise imaging technology. The bleeding immediately stopped and growth shrank down.

Dr Bedi said growths on facial area cannot be tackled with open surgery as they can leave disfiguring scars. Dr Bedi, who is among senior most members of the Vascular Society of India, said endovascular surgery is solution to such complicated lesions.