Delhi: 2.5-foot-long iron rod removed from man’s chest at city hospital

New Delhi: Doctors at a private hospital here have successfully removed a 2.5 feet-long and 4-inch-thick iron rod from the chest of a 22-year-old man. The rod, according to his family, had pierced into his chest after his car crashed into a truck loaded with rods.

The doctors at Max Superspeciality Hospital, Shalimar Bagh, performed the seven-hour-long surgery. The patient was stable and would be discharged after two to three days, they said.

According to doctors, the staff and others at the hospital were shocked to see the iron rod jutting out of the patient’s chest as he walked into the emergency ward. His family told doctors that his car crashed into a truck loaded with iron rods near Murthal in Haryana when he was travelling with his two friends. He was critically injured while his friends sustained mild injuries.

The patient was taken to the emergency ward of the hospital on June 15 at around 1.30 am and after stabilising the patient, the surgery was conducted by a team of four doctors from various departments, including plastic surgery.

Dr Kishalay Datta, director, emergency and trauma, said the patient had huge blood loss and his blood pressure was low when he reached the hospital.

Talking to TOI, senior consultant and in charge of vascular surgery Dr Achintya Sharma said: “The rod weighed around 2.5 kg. His chest wall was badly damaged. He had contusions of the lung and multiple rib fractures. We removed the rod and repaired the chest wall.” He added that the patient would take at least 15 more days to recover fully.