BS RAWAT
The care of patients suffering from chronic illnesses has been affected badly amidst the gloom and doom of the Coronavirus pandemic as most of the hospitals are busy preparing for and catering to the needs of those suffering from the deadly virus.

Amidst this crisis, a 10-year-old girl from West Bengal presented in the Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, New Delhi, with liver failure and altered consciousness. She had to be admitted in the pediatric ICU and put on a ventilator due to her sick condition. Workup revealed that she was suffering from a genetic disorder called Wilson's disease which affects multiple organs, especially liver and brain.

Dr Nishant Wadhwa from the Division of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Liver Transplantation, said, “As the girl already had advanced disease, she needed a living donor liver transplant without which she could not have been saved. As parents were unable to make financial arrangements for liver transplant, funds were arranged by the Sir Ganga Ram Hospital with the help of philanthropic organizations and all the necessary arrangements were made for the extensive surgery.”

Dr Wadhwa stated, “The child’s mother donated a part of her liver and multispecialty teams involving pediatric hepatology, pediatric intensive care and liver transplant unit coordinated to successfully perform the liver transplant surgery.”

“The girl was removed from the ventilator the very next day after the surgery and shifted to ward after five days of ICU stay, where she recovered well and was then discharged,” he said.

Due to lockdown in the whole country, the family couldn’t return to their native place and had to stay on in Delhi.They were thoroughly supported by the hospital both economically as well as socially so that the family could take care of the child well during these tough times.

At present, the child is doing well and the family is being shifted back to their native place. This highlights the importance of timely intervention which saved this child, the hospital said in a statement.

“It is the earnest request to the citizens not to ignore their symptoms and seek timely medical help to prevent complications,” the statement added.