- 20th
- July 2004
A PROVIDENTIAL RARE ESCAPE
A “LIFE BACK FROM THE WILDERNESS”
THE ‘HAND OF GOD’ THAT BROUGHT FOUR HOUR OLD BABY MANISH, FROM THE “JAWS OF DEATH” TO A FRESH LIFE
1-YR-OLD CELEBRATES BIRTHDAY WITH 'NEW' LEG
By: Gigil Varghese August 2, 2004
Manish Singh who celebrated his first birthday yesterday, got the perfect birthday gift: the ability to once again use his right leg. One year ago, when Manish was just a few hours old, he was dumped in a sugarcane field, in Varanasi, his umbilical cord still intact. A carnivore had eaten into his right thigh and calf muscles. Lying in the pediatric ward of Bombay Hospital, Singh, cared for by his foster mother Nirmala Singh, went through a six-hour surgery to get his right leg restored.
Dr Ashok Gupta, the doctor who treated Singh said that the boy would have to undergo two more surgeries, one six months later and the other when he turned five. Manish had to be rushed to the Institute of Medical Sciences, Varanasi for intensive and specialized medical and surgical care. He was provided the initial care of the life threatening and incapacitating tissue and nerve damage, which ensured the child’s survival and healing of the wound.
The final evaluation towards this end, delineated an extensive damage to the Blood Vessels, Muscles, Common Peroneal Nerve and Skin in the thigh and the calf region. They are collectively responsible for overall survival, function and the shape of the limb, enhancing one’s ability to lift the ankle and maintain a reasonable cadence during a normal walking gait.
The baby will stay in the hospital for another month after which the doctors will decide whether to discharge him or not depending on his condition. “It is a very unusual case. We have restored the lifeline nerves, vessels and skin on the right leg,” said Dr Gupta. The nerve from the left leg was transplanted to the right leg. Singh was brought to the city hospital on July 10 by a NGO, the SOS Children’s Villages of India. A part of the hospital expenses are being borne by the NGO.
Dr Ashok Gupta, the doctor who treated Singh said that the boy would have to undergo two more surgeries, one six months later and the other when he turned five. Manish had to be rushed to the Institute of Medical Sciences, Varanasi for intensive and specialized medical and surgical care. He was provided the initial care of the life threatening and incapacitating tissue and nerve damage, which ensured the child’s survival and healing of the wound.
The final evaluation towards this end, delineated an extensive damage to the Blood Vessels, Muscles, Common Peroneal Nerve and Skin in the thigh and the calf region. They are collectively responsible for overall survival, function and the shape of the limb, enhancing one’s ability to lift the ankle and maintain a reasonable cadence during a normal walking gait.
The baby will stay in the hospital for another month after which the doctors will decide whether to discharge him or not depending on his condition. “It is a very unusual case. We have restored the lifeline nerves, vessels and skin on the right leg,” said Dr Gupta. The nerve from the left leg was transplanted to the right leg. Singh was brought to the city hospital on July 10 by a NGO, the SOS Children’s Villages of India. A part of the hospital expenses are being borne by the NGO.
The incident
On August 1, 2003, at around 8 am a newborn baby was found abandoned in the field in Khuthana village, Varanasi by villagers. He was covered in blood and had serious injuries in his thigh and calf muscles. The boy was taken to the Chaubeypur police station and then to SOS Balgram. He was treated at the Benaras Hindu University’s medical center after which the baby was handed over to Nirmala Singh, a woman who works for the NGO. “The baby was a few hours old. His umbilical cord was not even cut,” said Nirmala. Yesterday, a year after his ordeal, cakes, chocolates and other children (patients) in the pediatric ward brought laughter on Manish’s face that was yet oblivious of his birthday gift.Dr Ashok Gupta undertook an exhaustive and specialized “Seven hour long Surgery” at the Bombay Hospital, Mumbai on 20th July 2004. This involved replacement of the lost muscle and skin bulk along with transfer of dispensable nerves and vessels and using them for restoration of continuity of the damaged segment of the nerve / vessel.
Dr. Ashok Gupta along with the Orthopedic Surgeon carried out another operation to fix his bones and then lengthened his muscles and bone so as to allow him to walk on his own legs. He further has to undergo some more surgeries when he turns fifteen.
