Thiruvananthapuram, Sep 01: Doctors at  KIMSHEALTH, successfully treated a  neonate  from Thiruvananthapuram, diagnosed with a rare congenital  anomaly, known as ‘Double Aortic Arch, occurring approximately 1 in 10,000 live births.’ The  baby weighing just 1.6 kg, was referred to KIMSHEALTH, with complaints of  severe breathlessness shortly after birth, and was immediately  admitted in the Neonatal ICU.A CT scan revealed this rare condition, in which the body’s main artery formed  two arches instead of the usual single arch, encircling and compressing the windpipe and food pipe , causing significant breathing difficulties.

Considering  the severity of the airway compression, the medical team, led by Dr. Naveen Jain, Senior Consultant, Neonatology, KIMSHEALTH, recommended surgery as the only definitive  option to save the life of the six day old child. Dr. Sowmya Ramanan, Senior Consultant, Pediatric Cardiac Surgery, chose to perform the complex, ‘Arch Division’ and  ‘Aortopexy’.  In  this surgery, the left arch was divided and the aorta was  gently pulled forward and secured to the back of the breastbone, relieving pressure on the windpipe and allowing the airway to remain open. 

“Sustaining the life of the baby weighing just 1.6 kg was extremely challenging, particularly as the baby required ventilatory support during the crucial post-operative period,” said Dr. Jain. “‘ “We successfully performed the highly complex Arch Division and Aortopexy surgeries. Following the procedure, the baby was able to breathe properly and  could regain health,” added Dr. Ramanan.

Following surgery, the baby required two weeks of ventilatory support and was discharged after a month-long hospital stay, with a favourable prognosis for a normal, healthy life. Dr. Femitha Pournami, Senior Consultant, Dr.Jyothi Prabakhar, Consultant, Neonatology, Dr.Ajay Ravi, Consultant, Pulmonology, Dr.Zunimol PKM, Senior Consultant, Radio Diagnosis and Interventional Radiology, Dr. Joseph  Thomas, Associate Consultant,  Imaging and Interventional Radiology, Dr. Rajesh M G, Consultant and  Dr. Keerthy Nath S, Associate Consultant  Pediatric- Cardiac Anesthesia, were also part of the treatment.