As many as 200 patients, all from weaker sections of society, got a new lease of life thanks to an angioplasty workshop conducted by the Sri Jayadeva Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences and Research.
The free angioplasties were conducted in collaboration with Dr. Govindraju Subramani Heart foundation and Medtronic Vascular Division, Santarosa, USA.
Most of the beneficiaries were farmers, daily wagers, street vendors, autorickshaw drivers, garment workers and senior citizens from Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh. All of them were given free stents.
According to institute Director C. N. Manjunath, performing 200 angioplasties in a span of four days is technically demanding. It was possible because the institute has seven cath labs, 60 full-time cardiologists and adequate number of technical and nursing staff, he said.
Of the 200 patients, 25% were below 50 years and 18 per cent were women. The youngest patient was a 28-year-old mason and the oldest a 85-year-old male.
“While 35% of the beneficiaries are diabetic, 51 % are suffering from hypertension. Nearly 40% are smokers and more than 50 % have high cholesterol levels,” he said adding that the incidence of heart attack related diseases is now high among the younger age group, women and poor in rural areas
