‘Case rare; patient recovering well’
Irfan Tramboo
SRINAGAR, Apr 5: In a rare case, the doctors at Shri Maharaja Hari Singh (SMHS) Hospital have removed 61 stones from the Common Bile Duct (CBD) of a 65-year-old patient.
As per details, the stones, whose presence has been termed as unprecedented in the CBD, were removed laparoscopically by the doctors of the Department of Surgery at Government Medical College (GMC), Srinagar.
The doctors, while describing the presence of so many stones in the CBD as unheard of, informed ‘Excelsior’ that the largest stone measured 2 centimeters, while the smallest one was 4-5 millimeters.
The stones have been removed from the elderly patient who sought medical aid following recurring episodes of upper abdominal pain. The surgery was carried out on Wednesday.
“Before the surgery, on evaluation, it came to the fore that the patient has CBD stones; following that, we carried out the necessary procedure allowing us to lay our hands on 61 stones,” the doctors said.
The patient had already undergone Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) thrice, considering it the first line of management when it comes to CBD stones.
“It is usually after the ERCP that the patient comes to surgery; in case of a high load of stones, we can opt directly for surgery and that’s what we did,” Dr. Arshad Rashid, Associate Professor who led the surgery, told Excelsior.
Dr. Arshad was joined by Dr. Abul Hameed Samoon, Associate Professor, Department of Surgery, and Dr. Rifat, who is working as a lecturer in the department.
After the necessary evaluation, the patient was operated upon using minimally invasive laparoscopy-which is transforming the entire landscape of the surgery-with the patient ready to be discharged in a few days.
“The stones will recur, and for that, we have created a pathway between the CBD and duodenum to enable the smooth passage of the stone if formed again.”
Professor Iqbal Saleem, Head of the Department, while noting that such procedures are carried out routinely, told Excelsior that the surgery once again demonstrates the excellent performance of the doctors of the Department of Surgery, GMC Srinagar.
“The patient is under observation, and imagine if such a procedure were done through an open surgery, and imagine the time it would have taken for the patient to recover; he needs no further help,” he said, adding that there is a need for people to trust their doctors.
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