Hambantota doctors perform miracle operation!

Hambantota miraculous surgery! ....of removing the Imbul (Kapok) tree piece of branch from the body
Hambantota Hospital doctors were successful in rescuing the life of a person who was thrown under a tree. A branch of a kapok tree had pierced his right shoulder region and it was removed by an operation by the doctors.

A.P. Sanjeewa, a 40 year old resident of Lunuma area in Ambalantota was able to save his life after being subjected to this operation.

He had been travelling towards his herd of cattle across Welipatanwila Fisheries Port in Ambalantota on a motor cycle on the evening of 22nd of August. The skies were cloudy and dark at that time and a Kapok tree which was by the side of the road fell in front of him for the strong blowing which occured with the downpour that moment.

On that occasion one of its branches happened to pierce his right shoulder after the tree fell and had thus gone into his body. However it did not emerge from the other side.

Due to severe pain as a result, he had been yelling on this occasion and a person in the neighbourhood who rushed to the scene managed to cut off the branch with a knife, leaving about a 3-foot piece of the branch out so that no damage was done to the victim and was thus hastened to Ambalantota Base Hospital.

After being admitted to Ambalantota Hospital, the doctors there attended to the preliminary treatment on Mr. Sanjeewa and was later despatched to Hambantota General Hospital in an ambulance in the company of a doctor.

Subsequently, though he was taken to the surgical theater at the Hambantota Hospital and were hoping to subject him to an operation, the problem that the doctors faced was the length of the protruding piece of wood stuck in his body which under circumstances was too long.

As a result of this condition it was difficult to take him inside the scan machine. In order to cut off the piece of wood so that no damage would be done to the body, the specialist doctors of the hospital had got down a hand-saw used to cut iron, to the surgical theater after which the piece was cut and was shortened; cautiously avoiding the blood vessels and tendons of the patient's body. The scanning examination was performed after that.

Afterwards, the required operation was conducted within a space of 3 - 4 hours they were able to extract the piece of wood inside the body.

After the surgery, Mr. Sanjeewa has now recovered.

What Dr. Mahinda Mallawathanthri, Chief Specialist Surgeon who attended to this operation said was that it was possible to save this patient's life because of the CT scan machine received by the Hambantota Hospital recently as well as the specialist medical service rendered on this occasion. He also commented on the fact that it was possible to rescue the patient because of the great effort taken by other doctors and the staff of the hospital as well. He further remarked that the person who removed the piece of wood from the victim's body without leaving room for physical damage prior to bringing him to hospital too contributed towards their success.

Photos and details -- Ambalantota Ajith Pushpakumara