The Chief Minister’s Comprehensive Health Insurance Scheme (CMCHIS) came in handy to parents of 11-month-old boy Dhanush. A major surgery was carried out on baby Dhanush to remove a tumour on his lower back. The surgery was performed at the Government Vellore Medical College Hospital (GVMCH), Adukkamparai recently. It helped prevent a condition where the child would have had to live with a lifelong disability, had it been ignored by the parents.
Briefing newspersons about the surgery, Dr. G. Selvarajan, Dean, GVMCH and Dr. V. Gopinath, who performed the feat, said the child was brought by his parents Panchaksharam and Radhika a month before the surgery with a swelling on the lower back, and weakness in the legs. He was unable to stand.
Dr. Gopinath said that the condition, known as meningo-myelocele, is marked by the jutting out of the nerves and the meninges (tissues) of the spinal cord in the absence of bones below the spinal cord.
As a result, the child had a visible swelling in the lower back. “It is a congenital defect marked by difficulty in sitting and standing. This might lead to weakening and paralysis of the legs resulting in the child having to live with braces, crutches or wheel chair throughout its life.”
Free of cost
Dr. Selvarajan said that the surgery, lasting two-and-a-half hours, was done free of cost under CMCHIS. The parents would have had to pay anywhere between Rs. 1 lakh and Rs.1.5 lakhs if they had gone to a private hospital, he added.
In a similar condition called spina bifida, the tumour would be exposed to the environment, leading to infection, whereas in the case of this child, the tumour was covered by skin.
Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) was done to diagnose the condition and plan the surgery, he said.
The Dean said that meningo-myelocele which occurs in three out of 1000 births was a congenital defect which was caused by deficiency of folic acid (Vitamin B-9) in the mother.
The mother should have started taking folic acid at least three months prior to conception.
The defect could have been identified through ultrasound scan four months after conception, he said. Dr. Gopinath said that after the surgery, the wound is healing, and the child is free from limb weakness, hydrocephalus, and meningitis.
The surgery was performed by a team constituted by Dr. Selvarajan and Dr. R. Soundarapandian, Medical Superintendent. Besides Dr.Gopinath, paediatric super specialist surgeon, the team included Dr. Rajavelu, Head of the Department of General Surgery and Dr.Deepa, anaesthetist.
