CHENNAI: Doctors at Saveetha Medical College and Hospital successfully removed a whopping 759 cysts from the abdomen of a 29-year-old woman from Sriperumbudur.
The woman had come to the hospital with complaints of severe abdominal pain, difficulty in breathing, eating food and drinking fluids and also vomiting.
On examination, the doctors found four large cysts in her abdomen. Inside the large cysts, there were multiple small cysts which the doctors call daughter cysts. In all, there were 759 cysts.
Speaking about the procedure on Wednesday, Dr Sundaravadanan, general surgeon, Saveetha Medical College and Hospital, said, "We did a CT scan and ultrasound and found four large cysts. The size of the cysts ranged from 10x15 cm, 10x10cm, 10x7cm and 10x5 cm. They occupied 50% of the abdomen space and were pressing all vital organs including liver, bile duct, left kidney, large intestine, urinary bladders and large blood vessels of the right lower limbs."
"The doctors had to plan the surgery meticulously as any cyst bursting inside, would prove fatal for the patient and also, the liquid spell will cause reoccurrence of the cysts. Interestingly, the woman had undergone surgery for removing a cyst when she was seven years old. Though hydatid cysts are common, removing these many cysts from a patient is rare and not reported before," said Dr Saveetha Rajesh, Director, Saveetha Medical College and Hospital.
Dr Kannan, Head of Surgical Gastroenterology, Saveetha Medical College and Hospital, said, "It is a hydatid disease and can affect any part of the organs. It is a common disease and is caused by tapeworms. The tapeworms, found in intestine of dogs, enters the human body.
"So, people should properly wash vegetables including greens, before consumption. The tapeworms can enter the body through drinking water also, so safe drinking water is a must. The disease is more endemic in Tamil Nadu, particularly in Madurai and also in Andhra Pradesh. But now the incidents have come down because of better hygiene practices among people."
"People should wash hands properly before consuming food. These tapeworms affect sheep and will affect dogs if they feed on diseased sheep and thereafter, from dogs, it might pass to humans," said Dr Anbazhagan, Assistant Professor, Surgical Gastroenterology, Saveetha Medical College and Hospital.
The surgery was performed on July 9 and it took over four hours to remove the cysts. The patient was discharged on the eighth day and was being monitored for reoccurrence.