Covid-19: Hyderabad hospital saves farmer’s life with timely ECMO treatment

Hyderabad: A 48-year-old farmer from Pochampalli village in the Jayashankar Bhupalapalli district was infected with the coronavirus last month (March) and was admitted to a local hospital with a fever and cough. Katla Narasimha Reddy began regular Covid treatment but his health gradually deteriorated. He was sent to Yashoda Hospitals in Secunderabad on ventilator support.

“Mr. Narasimha Reddy arrived at our emergency room on 7 March in a serious condition owing to acute Covid, and it was evident that he would require ventilator support as well as extracorporeal pulmonary support (ECMO) artificial lungs to survive. The same was told to the patient’s family members, and with their agreement, therapy on ‘Ecmo’ was administered,” said Dr. Hari Kishan Gonuguntla, a senior interventional pulmonologist at Secunderabad’s Yashoda Hospitals.

The intensity of the virus in the patient’s lungs is used to measure the health of Covid patients. The most essential phase of corona therapy is typically 4-6 weeks, depending on ECMO. Some people may require a lung transplant.

Taking all of this into consideration, the critical care team and interventional pulmonologists were able to give him the therapy he required. His lungs had been severely injured by the coronavirus before he arrived at Yashoda Hospital.

During the crucial phase of his illness, he was dependent on a ventilator due to high oxygen needs. During his treatment, he needed breathing, pronation, an early tracheostomy, guideline-based state-of-the-art therapy, intubation, and mechanical ventilation. The medical team was able to effectively wean him off the ventilator, Ecmo at the end of the week-long therapy.

What is ECMO treatment?

Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) involves pumping blood outside of your body to a heart-lung machine, which eliminates carbon dioxide and returns oxygen-filled blood back to your body’s tissues. Blood passes from the right side of the heart to the heart-lung machine’s membrane oxygenator, where it is rewarmed and returned to the body.

This technique allows blood to “bypass” the heart and lungs, giving these organs time to rest and recuperate.

ECMO is utilised in critical care conditions when your heart and lungs require assistance in order for you to recuperate. It might be useful to treat Covid-19, ARDS, and other infections.

Surge in Covid cases

According to the Union health ministry data released on Monday, India has registered 9,111 new coronavirus infections, while active cases have grown to 60,313. Meanwhile, with 27 fatalities, the death toll has risen to 5,31,14.