Ophthalmic doctors at the Government Rajaji Hospital successfully managed two highly complex ocular trauma cases, saving the patients from severe and permanent injuries.  

In the first incident, a 10-year-old boy, a native of Nilakottai in Dindigul district, was brought to the hospital with an antenna wire from a Play Station remote accidentally poked into his right lower eyelid. 

Parvathasundari, Professor of Ophthalmology, GRH, said, while the injury initially appeared superficial, the spring like wire had curved inward, creating a significant risk of deeper injury to the eye.  

“Recognising the complexity of the situation, the specialised ophthalmology team quickly took the child into surgery under general anaesthesia,” she added.  

After a meticulous procedure, Dr. Parvathasundari noted that the doctors successfully removed the wire without damaging the eye, preserving the child’s vision without any permanent injury.  

In another case, which involved a 50-year-old man, he was sent with eye injury from Theni following a road traffic accident.  

“A CT scan revealed a 6.7 cm long tubular foreign body had passed through his left eye and entered the middle cranial cavity with its tip resting in his medial temporal lobe,” she observed.  

After appropriate opinions, the medical team, including the ophthalmologist and neurosurgeons successfully explored the orbital floor and sinus tract to gently extract the entire object, Dr. Parvathasundari elaborated. 

In the young boy’s case, the doctors revealed, the anxious attenders in the private hospitals who tended first aid to the boy immediately after the accident, while trying to remove the foreign bodies from the injury drove it deeper making removal complicated. 

GRH Dean L. Arul Sundaresh Kumar, while speaking to press, regarding the two complicated procedures, said, the same injury in eyes, if deflected to the cornea, it would have turned more complex.  

“However, GRH, with sophisticated equipment and enough cornea in the bank, are always ready to start the procedure immediately in case of emergencies,” he added.  

If the cornea matches the recipient and other factors align, the transplantation would immediately be performed.  

But, due to lack of awareness and popularity of the private hospitals in the district, the facility available at GRH was overshadowed, he noted.  

Through the two complex surgeries, the Dean said, they wanted to inform people to seek the medical service of GRH immediately instead of going to private hospitals.  

He noted that the procedures performed on these two patients would have incurred a cost of approximately ₹25,000 ₹30,000 had they been sought at a private medical facility. 

“We urge the public to utilise the facilities at the GRH, where advanced medical equipment is available to address all types of medical emergencies,” stated Dr. Saravanan, Resident Medical Officer of GRH.