Bangladesh’s ex-PM Khaleda Zia placed on ventilator support: Doctors

Former Bangladesh prime minister Khaleda Zia's health condition has deteriorated and she was placed on ventilator support, doctors said.

“Her breathing difficulties increased, her oxygen level fell, and carbon dioxide levels rose,” according to a statement on Thursday by the chief of the medical board cardiologist Shahabuddin Talukdar.

It said the 80-year-old former premier was previously being treated with “High Flow Nasal Cannula and BiPAP support, but as there was no improvement, she was placed on elective ventilator support to give rest to her lungs and other vital organs”.

The Bangladesh Nationalist Party chairperson has been undergoing treatment at Dhaka's Evercare Hospital since November 23 for multiple health complications.

The statement said the three-time premier was kept under round-the-clock medical watch by a team of local and foreign specialists, as several of her vital organs continue to be under severe stress.

“Her kidney function has stopped completely, and she is undergoing regular dialysis,” the board said, adding she currently needed blood transfusions. The board detected problems in her “aortic valve” as well.