NEW DELHI: A 30-cm-long fan blade, which accidentally pierced the skull of a two-year-old boy, was successfully removed by doctors at a hospital in Faridabad. The boy suffered head injuries after an uncovered pedestal fan fell on him when he was playing outside his house.The team of doctors led by Dr Nitish Agarwal, consultant, neurosurgery, Fortis Escorts Hospital successfully conducted the procedure and removed the fan blade after a three-hour-long complex surgery. The child has been discharged from the hospital, said doctors.According to doctors, the child was admitted to the hospital in a conscious state and cerebrospinal fluid (a clear, colourless, watery fluid that flows in and around the brain and spinal cord) was leaking from his wound. The doctors performed a left frontal craniotomy — surgical removal of part of the bone from the skull to expose the brain — and removed the blade. After the surgery, the child was shifted to the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) and later moved to the general ward. He was kept on intravenous antibiotics for seven days to prevent any infection.Giving details of the case, Dr Agarwal, said, “The fan blade had pierced the left side of the child’s brain and thus, there was a serious concern that his speech might get affected. Also, there were chances of bleeding and haematoma (clot) formation in the brain as well as a risk of infection due to the foreign body presence inside the brain. We assessed all these challenges and carefully conducted the surgery to extract the fan blade by drilling the bone circumferentially around the blade, avoiding any manipulation of the blade. If the blade were not removed from the baby’s brain on time, it would have led to further injury to the brain, affecting his speech along with a high risk of severe infection like meningitis and ventriculitis (inflammation of the ventricles in the brain).”Dr Ajay Dogra, facility director, Fortis Escorts Hospital, Faridabad said: “This was a very challenging case, considering the age and critical condition of the patient. However, correct treatment and immediate medical intervention by the team of doctors saved the baby’s life.”
Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/faridabad/30cm-long-fan-blade-stuck-in-2-year-old-childs-skull-removed/articleshow/98674176.cms
