Complex ablation procedure performed on 44-year-old man

A 44-year-old man has been given a new lease of life by JIPMER doctors who performed a 'complex ablation procedure' free of cost for fast heart rhythm.
Dr Raja Selvaraj, Association Professor of Department of Cardiology in centrally sponsored JIPMER here, said in a release today that the man, tempo driver Rajaraman, was suffering from cardiac ailment some 18 months ago. Part of the heart muscle had died in an heart attack the patient suffered and he had difficulty in doing routine work, he said.
Rajaraman developed rhythm disorders as a result of the damage to the heart muscle and despite treatment at some hospitals including in Puducherry and Chennai, the disorder could not be controlled.

He approached JIPMER on September 12 and was subjected to the complex ablation procedure subsequently.
Dr Selvaraj, who performed the six hour long procedure using 'three dimensional mapping', said abnormal region of the heart was mapped and destroyed using a catheter placed from the blood vessels in the leg. The abnormal rhythm did not reappear.
Selvaraj said "as the patient continues to be at high risk for life threatening rhythms in the future, he underwent implantation of the device called 'Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator." The patient was discharged from hospital two days ago and has been asked for check up after a couple of weeks, he added.

Rajaraman hails from Cuddalore in neighbouring Tamil Nadu.
According to the release, the man would have faced the need to spend more than Rs five lakh for ablation and for implanting of the device in any private hospital. But he had the treatment free of cost at JIPMER, it added.