Open heart surgery performed at HCM, for the 300th time – Watch

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Open heart surgery performed at HCM, for the 300th time – Watch

5:55 CAT | 07 Jul 2022

Photo: Domingo

Maputo Central Hospital (HCM) is celebrating its 300th open heart operation, in this case, on a 36-year-old woman with a damaged valve that was causing breathing difficulties and chronic fatigue.

The surgery introduced a mechanical valve to restore the normal functioning of the heart.

The operation, which began at around 9.30 a.m. on Wednesday, was carried out by a team of Mozambican doctors led by surgeon Atililio Morais, and ended at around 1.00 p.m..

Speaking to ‘Domingo’ at the end of the operation, Doctor Morais described it as successful, explaining that the patient would stay in intensive care for three days before being transferred to the ward.

The subject of ‘Operation 300’ saw her life seriously impacted by her condition. She got tired easily and could no longer do her routine work, and when she went to hospital was diagnosed with a severe heart condition.

“In this operation, we had planned to keep the valve, and make very specific surgical interventions we call ‘mitral repair’. But when we opened the heart, we saw that the valve was much more damaged than the ultrasound had suggested,” the doctor explained.

So, a new mechanical valve costing about US$2,000, paid for by the government, was introduced. The valve should work for 25 to 30 years, but the patient must take medication for the rest of her life to prevent her blood from clotting when it comes into contact with the object.

Due to its complexity, surgery like this takes, on average, five to six hours. During this time, the patient’s heart is opened and ceases to function. In the case of ‘Patient Number 300’, the operation was performed within the allotted time. Then the heart was closed and returned to normal function.

“We usually receive between 60 and 70 patients a year here, at the HCM, and we operate on up to 30 patients, but the hospital’s ambition is to reach 100 operations a year,” Morais said.

He added that there are only two health units in the country which perform surgery like this, HCM being the only public hospital to do so.

The surgeries are funded by the Government, through the Ministry of Health, and with the support of partners: one is Cornelder de Moçambique, which operates the port of Beira, one other was Banco Único, which is now Nedbank, and now there is a commitment by the Port of Maputo, Atilio Morais, explains in the video below.

Each surgery costs, on average, US$10,000 to US$15,000 (650 to 975 thousand meticais). This includes the prostheses placed in the heart, which cost US$2,000, the anaesthesia, which is very expensive, the material and the professionals involved. In developed countries, this sort of intervention costs between US$30,000 and US$35,000.

“Before the HCM started operating, the state spent US$20,000 to US$30,000 per patient for surgery outside the country,” Morais noted.

The first open heart operation by Mozambican doctors took place on 25 April, 2008.

Source: Domingo / O País / HCM