NE HEALTH BUREAU
CHENNAI, MAY 8
Sri Ramachandra Medical Centre has rescued youth with high heart rate by implanting high-cost cardiac defibrillator under Tamil Nadu Chief Minister’s Comprehensive Health Insurance Scheme, said Dr S Thanikachalam, Chairman & Director, Cardiac Care Centre, SRMC here on Wednesday.
Speaking with the media, Dr S Thanikachalam said, “A 36-year-old very active male and sole breadwinner of a family was suffering from intolerable palpitation (very high heart rate) causing near black out. He had multiple hospital and emergency room visits, and each time he was found to have very high heart rate (more than 200 per min). He was not responding to emergency intravenous medications and often needed external defibrillation, where heavy energy is delivered to the patient chest wall to stop the vicious cycle of high heart rate to restore the normal rhythm of the heart. The problem kept recurring requiring repeated hospital admissions.”
“The patient was evaluated in SRMC and diagnosed to have a problem in the right side chamber of the heart called ARVC (Arrhthmogenic Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy) and as per international guidelines required a special pacemaker device (implantable cardio defibrillator). Implantation of Cardiac Defibrillator enables delivery of a small current directly to the heart whenever the heart rate goes beyond a particular limit, which is life saving and allows the patient to continue his work,” Dr S Thanikachalam added.
The cost of this special pacemaker was high and he could not afford it. When SMRC approached the Officials of the Chief Minister’s Comprehensive Health Insurance Scheme for help, they immediately came to the patient’s rescue. Because of the swift action of the Government, we could implant the device immediately and enable him to return back to his normal work, said Dr S Thanikachalam, Chairman & Director, Cardiac Care Centre, SRMC.
In this condition, the right lower chamber of the heart is structurally defective and it happens in one in three thousand people. This condition can cause sudden increase in the heart rate and sometimes even death. It requires special pacemaker (implantable cardiac defibrillator) which is often life saving for these patients, said Dr. Vinod Kumar & Dr. Preetam Krishnamurthy, Cardiologists, SRMC who regularly treated the patient.
