Thane: A 14-member medical team from Thane air-dashed to Mauritius to operate on a 27-year-old Mauritian woman who was critically injured by a stray bullet during local protests in Port Louis.For the six-hour lifesaving surgery conducted on Oct 12, eight super-specialists flew with 300 kg of specialised medical equipment worth Rs 1.5 crore that they had to mobilise right after a diplomatic call for help on Oct 10.Elodie Thomas was returning home from work in a van near Port Louis when she was hit by a stray bullet during police firing. Mauritian health minister Anil Bachoo immediately called Indian High Commissioner Anurag Srivastava, who, along with local authorities, asked KIMS Hospitals in Thane for assistance.Doctors assessed her medical reports in consultation with their counterparts in the govt-run hospital in Port Louis, but ruled out her transfer to India given her delicate condition. It was instead decided that a surgical team would head for Mauritius.“The bullet had entered from near her ear, passed through the parotid gland and the angle of the mandible (lower jaw bone), before lodging near the spine,” said neurosurgeon Dr Kapil Khandelwal who was a part of the operating team.En route to Port Louis, the medical team had prepared three alternative treatment plans. “Throughout the flight, we were discussing the different scenarios for the surgery,” said interventional neurologist Dr Rakesh Lalla.At the public hospital, the Thane medical team first had to prepare a makeshift operation theatre with their equipment. Scans showed that the bullet had come to rest barely two millimetres away from two major vessels supplying blood to the brain. This meant any minor injury to these vessels could result in life-threatening haemorrhage or stroke.The team located and removed the bullet, repaired the jaw and preserved the facial nerve within a six-hour period.Doctors told TOI the patient had not suffered any neurological deficit or infection after the surgery. Thomas has since shown significant improvement and is able to walk a few steps. Some members of the delegation returned soon after the operation, while specialists involved in post-operative care stayed back.The shooting had triggered further protests and unrest in Mauritius, including road blockades and attacks on police property. A police sergeant was arrested and provisionally charged in connection with the incident, which remains under investigation.On Wednesday, Kalyan Dombivli Municipal Corporation mayor Harshali Chaudhari and standing committee chairman Mallesh Shetty felicitated Dr Lalla at a general body meeting in Kalyan.
