31-Year-Old Man with Heart Pumping of Merely 20%, Successfully Underwent Complex Emergency Surgery at Wockhardt Hospital During Lockdown

The patient was diagnosed with acute type A aortic dissection that has significant mortality without treatment

In a challenging surgery, his heart valve and the big blood vessel called ascending aorta was changed with an artificial valve and artificial blood vessel respectively
A team headed by Dr. Upendra Bhalerao, Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgeon at Wockhardt Hospital, Mira Road, gave a new lease of life to a patient who was in acute heart failure with heart-pumping of 20%. The patient has diagnosed with acute type A aortic dissection, there was an intimal tear in the largest blood vessel arising from the heart (aorta), and that supplies blood to all the vital organs. He underwent a complex surgery, amid lockdown, and soon, will resume his daily activities.

Life was smooth until 31-year-old Vipul Narkhede, a resident of Boisar, Palghar District, Maharashtra, who runs a travel agency, suddenly encountered shortness of breath and chest pain. He fainted and was brought to Wockhardt Hospital, Mira Road, on a ventilator, in the middle of the night. The patient presented with acute onset chest pain similar to a heart attack, low blood pressure, and was critical. He was in heart failure with heart-pumping of barely 20-25%. He underwent an echocardiogram and CT scan that revealed he had acute type An aortic dissection.

Dr. Upendra Bhalerao, Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgeon at Wockhardt Hospital, Mira Road, highlighted, “Acute type A aortic dissection is a rarely occurring aortic pathology in young individuals. This suggests that there is an intimal tear in the largest blood vessel (Aorta) which arises from the heart and supplies blood to all the vital organs including the brain, intestine, kidneys, and limbs. Due to the tear in the aorta, all the vital organs are at risk of malperfusion and there is a high risk of sudden death due to bleeding in the chest following rupture of the aorta. Acute aortic dissection without treatment has a mortality of 95-98%. Hence, the patient was scheduled for emergency aortic valve replacement and aortic root replacement surgery immediately