HYDERABAD: A highly rare genetic disorder was treated a fortnight ago in Osmania General Hospital (OGH) giving a new lease of life to two brothers. The duo, affected with Progressive Familial Intrahepatic Cholestasis (PFIC), were treated with a procedure called ‘Ileal Exclusion Surgery’, which has reportedly being done only in five documented cases in India.
According to the doctors from OGH’s Surgical Gastroenterology and Liver Transplantation department, the condition occurs when by birth, patients are born without the ability to drain bile from the liver even though their bile ducts are open. This can lead to serious liver damage, cancer and eventually death. Generally, most hospitals opt to transplant such a liver, but the ‘Ileal Exclusion Surgery’, if done early, can arrest the damage to the liver.
“This is a rare surgical procedure which only gained popularity in the last two years. In India, only five documented cases have undergone this procedure and OGH has done this first time in the twin Telugu States,” said Dr Ch Madhusudhan, Professor, and Head, Department of Surgical Gastroenterology and Liver Transplantation, OGH.
In this case, the two brothers aged 14 and 16 years from Khammam had presented with itching, jaundice and growth retardation. “They went to many hospitals where they were advised for liver transplant as a treatment option, but since they are very poor they came to OGH for a consultation. They have fully recovered after the ‘Ileal Exclusion Surgery’ and have been discharged,” he added.