A Second Chance At Life: Mumbai Doctor Saves Kolkata Boy's Life Twice In 15 Years

Not many people in the world are lucky enough to get a new lease life. But a Kolkata-based teenager is incredibly lucky as he has got two such chances. A Mumbai-based doctor has removed a coconut-sized stone weighing 1 kg from the augmented (enlarged) urinary bladder of a Kolkata-based 17-year-old boy. The patient, Reuben Sheikha, is an orphan, and the surgery was performed free of cost on compassionate grounds. He was born with an enlarged bladder and a deformed penis. He suffered from Exstrophy-Epispadias Complex (EEC), a rare condition found in one of 1,00,000 births. In this condition, the exposed bladder is unable to store urine and causes leakage.

Almost 15 years ago, when Dr Redkar used to practice at Wadia Hospital, he had treated the boy for EEC. He had performed a bladder augmentation to increase the size and Mitrofanoff Procedure which creates a new tube on a child's belly through which he/she child can urinate by using a catheter.

Saved Twice

Dr Redkar, who is a paediatric consulting surgeon, told the Hindustan Times, "The tube was made from the appendix, and connected the bladder to a small hole created in the belly button. However, after his treatment, he went back to Kolkata and did not follow up,". Last month, the patient complained about severe discomfort, pain and was unable to control urination. After speaking to the doctor on call, Sheikha travelled nearly ,2000 km and landed up at Dr Redkar's clinic.

Dr Asmita Mahajan, a consultant neonatologist and Dr Suresh Bhagat, a consultant urologist at SL Raheja Hospital and Dr Redkar, performed surgery to remove a massive calcium oxalate stonefrom the boy's body. After the surgery, they reconstructed the augmented urinary bladder in a challenging procedure.

The doctor said that the Sheikha travelled with a local guardian and had almost no money to pay for the surgery. If the stone was left untreated, it could prove fatal for the boy. When the hospital authorities were informed about the severity of the case, they decided to operate at no cost to save the teenager's life.

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