Rare surgery gifts new life to girl

• A rare and complex surgery was successfully performed in the city
• The 10-year-old had developed a cyst in her brain
• Helping Hand Foundation, an NGO, mobilised Rs 3 lakh for the operation in just 3 hrs

Hyderabad: A 10-year-old girl, Khatija, suffering from posterior 3rd Ventricular Arachnoid Cyst with Hydrocephalus (a form of watery cyst in the brain with fluid build-up) was operated and discharged the same day.

The city-based NGO, Helping Hand Foundation, mobilised Rs 3 lakh for the operation within three hours after being approached by the girl’s father who works in a masjid in Nampally and earns Rs 5,000 a month.

Mujtaba Hasan Askari of Helping Hand Foundation said, “When we heard about the case, we immediately contacted our panel neurosurgeon and decided to launch a fundraiser campaign.

The total ask was Rs 2.5 lakh (special package) and by the grace of God and support of our donors, within 3 hours of posting the case, we mobilised the target amount, and the girl got operated the very next morning and discharged on the same day.”

Highlighting the complexity of the case, Dr Amir Basha Paspala, senior neurosurgeon who carried out the procedure, said, 3rd Ventricular Cysts are typically located in the centre of the brain and are basically a water filled sac.

They are extremely challenging to reach, and hence, it was decided to go for endoscopic procedure, the doctor added.

While the doctor was able to reach the cyst through the endoscope with precision, what he incidentally observed was that the inlet of the “Aqueduct,” a narrow passage that connects the 3rd and 4th ventricle of the brain, was obstructed with a membrane.

The doctor and the team used the same endoscope to puncture the membrane. The obstruction of the inlet, which was not visible in the MRI, was an incidental finding and was the root cause of Hydrocephalus (cerebral fluid) built up in the brain, the doctor said.