BENGALURU: Doctors of a city hospital removed 25 litres of water from the body of a 12-year-old girl on Saturday. The girl, a native of Chittoor in Andhra Pradesh, had a kidney problem and her family didn’t know. The doctors worked hard for five consecutive days to remove the water from her body. Since the girl was given immunization, there was no infection.
The girl’s stomach was swollen as a result of the water filling her body. At the time she was admitted to Rainbow Children’s Hospital in Marathahalli, her weight was 65 kg. The doctors who examined her knew it was nephrotic syndrome. Leakage of protein content may have impaired the renal health. The girl was excreting very little urine.
Thus the majority of the element was stored in the body. High levels of protein in the urine result in the swelling of the abdomen. Normally oxygen levels should be around 95 per cent, the doctors explained.
The girl’s body was filled with too much water – in the lungs and stomach. Her parents did not notice the changes in their daughter’s body.
“Lack of awareness is the culmination of many such cases. The first symptom of this problem is eye swelling. But it is ignored. Weight gain in a very short time requires immediate consultation with a kidney specialist,” said Dr Shaumil Gaur from the hospital.
Considering her age, the girl should have weighed between 38 and 40 kg. But she was overweight, Dr Shaumil said. Her parents had initially taken her to the local doctor. But there was no solution to the problem. When the girl’s condition worsened, she was brought to Bengaluru. Urinary problems are not abnormal in children. About 400 children with similar symptoms are currently being treated, Dr Gaur added.