Rare case of dysphagia aortica treated successfully

VIJAYAWADA

Doctors at the Top Star Hospitals at Kanuru near the city have successfully treated a patient suffering from a rare condition called 'dysphagia aortica' caused due to bulging of the aorta, the main artery that carries blood from the heart to the torso.

In a press conference at the hospital on Saturday, senior cardiac surgeon Arun Kumar Haridas, who performed surgery along with his team, said that the 67-year-old patient A. Raghava Rao of Tadigadapa village came to the hospital in moribund condition due to dysphagia aortica.

He was diagnosed with a large aortic aneurysm measuring 10x10x15 centimetres in the left chest and the food pipe was compressed due to it. The patient's age, inability to drink or eat, size of the aneurysm and weak heart were major complications and it was a challenging operation for the surgeons, he said.

He said a special technique called left partial bypass procedure was adopted and blood flow into the aorta was stopped for 45 minutes to resect the aneurysm successfully. The patient was able to eat without any issue 12 hours after the surgery, he said.

Consultant cardiologist Yalaga Srinivasu said that the normal diametre of the aorta is three centimetres and it is fatal if it enlarges to more than five centimetres.

Hospital chairman Srinivas Tatineni and others were present at the press conference.