Suffering from Severe Congenital Heart Conditions, 8-Year-Old Mast Zakharia Yusuf is Rejuvenated Again after an Open Heart Surgery in India

At a tender age of eight, Mast Zakharia Yusuf experienced shortness of breath, incessant sessions of cough and fell sick frequently. Unaware of the cause behind such conditions, his parents checked in the hospital in Somalia where an echocardiogram showed two perforations in the ventricular septum of his heart. He also suffered from patent ductus arteriosus or PDA. A cardiac correction became the need of the hour as little Yusuf accompanied by his father came to India for his treatment. Here his father elaborates on their medical travel experience in India.

Where did Yusuf have his treatment in India?

He had his treatment at Medanta – Medicity, Gurgaon where an open heart surgery was performed by Dr. Amit Misri.

How did the multiple defects in the ventricular septum lead to other symptomatic conditions?

When we arrived at the hospital in India, a repeat echocardiogram was performed to check the condition of the defect in his heart. My son's medical condition was complicated. Dr. Misri explained that it was a congenital cardiac defect in which because of the holes in the ventricular septum, the oxygen-rich blood got mixed with the oxygen-poor blood. It also led to leakages making the blood pumped in the left ventricle of his heart to travel to the right ventricle going straight to the lung arteries that resulted in congestion or the shortness of breath and coughs he suffered from. He explained that avoiding a treatment would result in high blood pressure in the lung arteries that may eventually lead to permanent damage to its blood vessels.

Along with this, Mast also suffered from PDA in which the blood vessel that circulated blood around his heart before birth did not close as it normally does after a couple of days the baby is born resulting in abnormal blood flow amongst the two important blood vessels that distributed blood from the heart to the lungs and the rest of the body. After listening to the elaborate diagnosis I was speechless. I did not know wheather a treatment would be able to save him or not, after all he is just eight years old and has already been weakened by the symptoms itself. But when I looked at him, I realized that my boy has stayed strong since he was born and he won't give up. 

How has been his recovery post surgery?  

Mast's recovery has been stable. It took about three to four hours to complete the open heart surgery. Immediately after, he was shifted to the ICU where he was thoroughly monitored by Dr. Misri and the nurses. Within the eight days stay in the best pediatric cardiology hospital in India, there was prominent improvement in his condition. The bouts of frequent coughing are gone and he has been breathing without any difficulty since then. I am really very happy with the treatment and thank Dr. Misri for such a miracle.

Did the hospital cater to the requisites of the treatment?

Yes, indeed it has. Medanta’s medical infrastructure is commendable. Dr. Misri has been thorough and dexterous with the diagnosis as well as the treatment. As it is a major surgery, I was a bit apprehensive but Dr. Misri reassured me that he is going to be fine. The patient care team and all the staffs are very organized and cater to the medical urgency of each patient with diligence.

How did you come across Medanta – the Medicity Hospital in India?

My case manager at Vaidam helped me to get an appointment at Medanta Hospital. I got a call from him soon after I enquired in their website.

In what ways did you receive assistance from Vaidam?

The whole team of Vaidam has made significant contributions in my medical trip to India. In fact without them, I don’t think my son’s treatment would have been so fruitful. My case manager assisted me with all the information regarding the best pediatric cardiac surgeon in India and provided me with quotes. They helped us with an Arabic translator, made us speak to one of the other patients from Somalia who also had their treatment in India under their assistance and arranged a comfortable accommodation for us before our arrival in the country. I am really grateful to them for their dedicated assistance, more so because they have also helped at discounting the treatment cost so that it falls within my budget.