Eyesight of 10 feared hit after cataract surgery

According to the health minister’s treatment, the complication arising from the infection has been controlled in 11 of the 12 patients.

“Some of the patients didn’t turn up (on appointed date) for follow up after the surgery. When they finally did, it was found that they had developed edema,” Dr RM Jitiya, medical superintendent of SHGMCH told The Indian Express. Edema refers to swelling in the eye and can lead to blurry vision.

Dr Swati Devanhalli, head of MJ Institute of Ophthalmology, said that five patients, aged between 50 and 60 years, were referred and admitted on various dates for treatment, and were discharged as of Tuesday.

“There has been some loss of eyesight but we cannot yet tell if there is permanent absolute loss or not. The complication arose due to pseudomonas bacterial infection and only after an investigation we can conclude the reason,” said Devanhalli.

Dr Jitia said that a few patients who underwent cataract surgery on November 17 reported post-operative complications when they came to the SHGMCH on November 22 for follow up visit. Later on, other patients also reported complications.

“Prima facie, it appears that the patients didn’t take post-operative care they were asked to. Samples from operation theatre have returned negative for any infection. However, we are investigating possible reasons for these complications,” Dr Jitiya said, adding a female patient who was the first to report complications was referred to Bhavnagar for treatment and that she was successfully treated.

SHGMCH is run by Gajera Trust, a non-profit run by diamantaire Vasant Gajera of Laxmi Diamond. The state government had transferred the Amreli district hospital to Gajera Trust to be converted into a hospital attached to a medical college the NGO had set up under the public-private partnership mode.

In 2016, a similar incident occured, where 12 out of 25 patients who had undergone cataract surgery had reported complications. An expert team of the health department had concluded that the infection was contracted due to presence of pseudomonas bacteria in the operation theatre.