Weight loss surgery goes awry for Mumbai hospital

Bariatric surgeon Dr Mufazzal Lakdawala had helped raise nearly ₹64 lakh for Egyptian national Eman Abd el Aty’s treatment through crowdfunding. The total cost of Eman’s treatment is said to have topped ₹2 crore.

But, while Eman had arrived in Mumbai 10 weeks ago amidst a blaze of positive publicity, the last few days have seen Indian doctors and the hospital receiving a lot of adverse publicity as the family complained of breach of trust and little progress while doctors hit back at who they believed were ungrateful relatives.

A team of doctors from a specialist hospital in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) flew in on Wednesday to check on Eman, who is currently in Mumbai’s Saifee Hospital where she underwent a weight loss surgery last month.

"We know about the ongoing crisis regarding Eman's treatment and wouldn't make any official comment on it,” a doctor, part of the team of seven from Abu Dhabi’s VPS Healthcare, was quoted as saying by NDTV. According to news reports, Eman’s sister Shaimaa Selim is considering to move her to the Abu Dhabi-based hospital.

It was reported on Tuesday that Saifee Hospital had asked Eman to pack-up and leave in the next fortnight, according to Eman’s sister quoted by DNA.

Eman’s sister, Shaimaa Selim, had expressed concerns over flying back to Egypt, saying that her worsening health in the wake of the weight-loss surgery makes her unfit for flying, according to the DNA report.

"How can I take my sister back to Egypt in a plane? What if something happens to her during the journey?" Selim was quoted as saying.

According to news reports, Saifee Hospital decided on allowing Eman an early discharge because of her “miraculous recovery”.

"Her weight loss has been miraculous, which is the reason why the time required for her to be in the hospital has reduced," Huzaifa Shahabi, the COO of Saifee Hospital, told DNA.

In January, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) reported the lead surgeon, Dr Mufazzal Lakdawala, saying that Selim would take six months to recuperate after her surgery.

On Tuesday, 12 of the 13 doctors who were caring for Eman recused themselves from her dealing with her anymore, in protest against controversial claims raised by Emam’s sister Selim.

In a reported video shared by Eman’s sister Selim, who is accompanying her on the trip, she called Dr Lakdawala a “liar” for giving their family a false hope that Eman would lose weight and be fine at the time of taking up the case.

Dr Aparna Govil Bhasker at Saifee Hospital’s Bariatric Surgery Ward retorted to Selim’s allegations through a Facebook post, in which she lamented that “Eman's case is an example of the worst kind of assault that a patient's family can do to a doctor.”

Dr Bhasker wrote on Facebook:

Bariatric Surgeon Dr Mufazzal Lakdawala, who hasn’t quit on Eman unlike his other 12 teammates, said,

The BBC reported in January that Dr Lakdawala’s previous patients included the likes of current Union Government ministers including Nitin Gadkari and Venkaiah Naidu, whose weight-loss surgeries were spearheaded by the high-profile surgeon.

Saifee Hospital has destroyed Eman’s life, sister claims

According to news portal MyMedicalMantra, Selim alleged in her video that her sister’s face had turned blue and she couldn’t move. She also claimed that Eman suffered thrombosis (stroke due to blood clotting in brain) twice since landing in Mumbai, and wasn’t talking at all.

"In Egypt, Eman used to talk a lot and smiled often. She was so lively. But now, she has become so tired. She doesn't talk or move at all. Doctors told me her brain has been affected, but I don't know what the cause is as no CT scan machine here has the facility to test a patient weighing 250 kg,” Selim was quoted as saying in another English daily, Midday.

Selim reportedly claimed that it was because of Dr Lakdawala’s insistence on having Eman admitted in the Mumbai hospital that she overlooked the option of getting her treated in hospitals in Dubai.

"I had received help from hospitals in Dubai, but Dr Lakdawala convinced us that all facilities were available in Mumbai," Midday quoted her as saying.

MyMedicalMantra quoted Dr Lakdawala as explaining that he didn’t have expertise to Eman’s neurological problem.

“As a bariatric surgeon, I did my best, but I do not have the expertise to treat her neurological problem. Her stroke history has always been a cause for concern for which we plan to do a CT scan before sending her home.”

Eman’s case history

At 500 kg, 36-year-old Eman Abd El Aty was believed to be the world’s heaviest woman alive before she got operated on in the Saifee Hospital in Mumbai.

The Egyptian weighed 5 kg at birth and was diagnosed with elephantitis, according to her family members quoted by the BBC. She suffered a stroke at the age of 11 and has been bedridden since.

She got operated on March 7, following which her condition further worsened, her sister Selim claims.

While the doctors at Saifee Hospital say that Eman lost 250 kg as result of the surgery, Selim has debunked the claims saying that Eman lost just around 60 kg of fat.

Midday quoted Selim as alleging that the hospital had just chucked out water from Eman’s body, while the fat still remained.