5-year-old becomes youngest patient to undergo 'awake craniotomy' at AIIMS Delhi
New Delhi, Jan 6: Doctors at AIIMS, Delhi successfully performed a brain tumour surgery on a five-year-old girl while keeping her in a conscious state during the operation with the hospital claiming that she was the youngest patient in the world to undergo such a procedure.
The procedure termed as 'awake craniotomy' (conscious sedation technique) surgery for left perisylvian intraaxial brain tumour was performed on January 4, AIIMS said in a statement.
The child presented with a history of seizures and her brain MRI was done which showed a tumour in the left side of her brain adjacent to speech/language area, it said.
The surgery lasted three hours, including time taken for giving local anaesthesia to the child by neuroanaesthetists.
The tumour was removed successfully by a team of neurosurgeons as she remained conscious throughout the procedure.
"Technological adjuncts viz preoperative functional MRI brain, intraoperative ultrasonography, neuronavigation were used to localise tumour precisely during resection while mapping of functional areas was being carried out under awake conditions. Ice cold saline was used for the brain surface to prevent any seizures during the procedure," the statement said.
"The child is doing well and will be sent home on Monday," it said.
A long discussion was held between team members, patient's family and the child before taking a decision to go ahead with the surgery. They were counselled at length on steps of procedure, it stated.
She was shown common objects, common animals and given some tasks for language and sensorimotor assessments before surgery, which were repeated during the surgical procedure also.
She is a first standard student and was quick in identifying the picture of Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the surgery, the statement said.
"Awake surgeries for brain tumours are done for maximising tumour removals and minimising neurological deficits usually. During awake craniotomy, patients should feel a minimum level of pain while being completely able to cooperate in neurological tests," it said.
"Although this method is called awake craniotomy, this method requires even more collaboration in perfect harmony of the surgical and anaesthesia teams than other operations under general anaesthesia said,' Dr Deepak Gupta, Professor of Neurosurgery who performed this operation with his team with neuroanesthesia team led by Dr Mihir Pandia and Dr Gyanendra Pal Singh.
"Akshita happens to be the youngest child in the world to undergo successful brain tumour surgery under awake conditions at this age at AIIMS, Delhi," Dr Gupta said.
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NIA registers case to probe recovery of 79 crude bombs in poll-bound West Bengal
New Delhi (PTI): The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Sunday registered a case to probe recovery of 79 crude bombs in poll-bound West Bengal, officials said.
The move came following a directive by the Union Home Ministry in this regard, they said.
In pursuance to the home ministry's order, the anti-terror agency on Sunday registered a case, which was originally filed at Uttar Kashi police station, Bhangar division, Kolkata on Saturday, and took up the investigation, an NIA spokesperson said in a late night statement.
"The case pertains to recovery of 79 crude bombs and other incriminating materials by Kolkata police, which were being stored at a spot, thereby endangering human life and property," the spokesperson said.
Earlier in the day, the Election Commission had directed the West Bengal Police to launch a special drive to arrest those involved in illegal manufacturing of crude bombs in the poll-bound state, an official said.
It asserted that all cases related to the making of any such explosive would be probed by the National Investigation Agency, the official said.
The directive came after the police recovered a large number of crude bombs from the house of a person, allegedly a TMC worker, at Bhangar in South 24 Parganas district, days ahead of the second and final phase of the assembly polls in the state.
The explosives were recovered during a search at the residence of Rafikul Islam following specific inputs, the official said.
The poll panel also issued a warning to senior police officers across the state over any lapse in maintaining law and order before the April 29 polling.
The first phase of the assembly elections in West Bengal was held on April 23, while the second phase will take place on April 29. Votes will be counted on May 4.
A record 93.19 per cent turnout has been recorded in the first round of polling. Bhangar will vote in the second phase.
