Two weeks after an adult landed right on top of her , out of the blue, Dhanyasri, 4, is finally on the road to recovery after intensive treatment and a surgery. Looking out at her doctors, nurses and the press from a seat on Monday at Apollo Children’s Hospital with her father by her side, the four-year-old even answered a few questions and thanked everyone.
Dhanyasri had suffered severe injuries on the night of January 28, when a man fell from the second storey of a building right on top of her. “She was deeply comatose when she came in,” said Suchitra Ranjit, senior consultant at the paediatric ICU of the hospital. The team at the children’s hospital had coordinated with the hospital in Tondiarpet before they arrived there, stabilised Dhanyasri and transported her. Doctors strove to ensure her blood pressure and oxygen levels were maintained. “She had a diffuse axonal brain injury,” Dr. Ranjit said, explaining that the whole brain had been shaken up. In addition, she had fractures in her spine and ankle.
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On day three, intra-cranial pressure monitoring revealed that the brain was swelling up, and the pressure was mounting — from a normal level of less than 15mmHg to over 30. This, Dr. Ranjit said, had the risk of leading to brain herniation — brain tissue shifting from its normal position — and could potentially lead to irreversible damage. An emergency decompressive surgery was performed then, in order to protect the brain. This involved removing the top of her skull in order to give the brain, space, and decrease the pressure. “The skull bone has been stored in deep freeze at the blood bank and will be replaced in another surgery two or three months from now,” said neurosurgeon Shankar Ganesh. At present, she wears a soft, protective helmet.
For her fractures, doctors said a brace has been placed on her spine and a cast on her ankle as they could be managed without surgery. Doctors stressed the importance of early, multi-disciplinary treatment with traumatic brain injuries. The hospital sees around 15 such cases per year, they said.
Since then, Dhanyasri’s recovery has been smooth. Her father, C. Sridhar, who is a water can supplier, said the family was very worried in the first few days but since the surgery, she has recognised her parents and remembers things. People have called from other countries to offer support too, he said. Health Minister C. Vijaya Baskar, who visited her twice, had said her treatment would be covered under the Chief Minister’s Comprehensive Health Insurance Scheme. “We want to thank everyone for their prayers and donations towards her treatment,” Mr. Sridhar said.
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