Doctors at Medanta Lucknow Save 6-Year-Old Boy’s Life from Severe Multi-Organ Infection

Lucknow : In a remarkable medical achievement, a team of specialists at Medanta Hospital, Lucknow, successfully saved the life of a 6-year-old boy named Himanshu, who was suffering from a rapidly spreading, life-threatening staphylococcal infection that caused multi-organ dysfunction and septic shock.

The young patient was brought to Medanta’s Emergency Department in a critical condition on ventilator support after being referred from another facility. He was immediately transferred to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU). Doctors revealed that without timely source control of such severe systemic infections, the mortality rate can exceed 70 to 80 percent.

The illness initially triggered from a minor hand injury, escalating into severe necrotizing pneumonia, Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS), severe lung cavities, endocarditis with an aortic root abscess, and osteomyelitis in the humerus bone. Additionally, an infected blood clot (thrombus) formed in the subclavian vein, acting as a continuous source of infection throughout his body.

Despite aggressive antimicrobial therapy, the child’s condition deteriorated, prompting the PICU team to take decisive action. Utilizing Interventional Radiology, doctors performed a successful subclavian vein thrombectomy to eliminate the primary infection source. Following the procedure, the child stabilized within 48 hours, allowing for the gradual withdrawal of inotropic life-support medications.

Subsequently, the orthopedic team executed surgical curettage and lavage to clear the bone infection. After six weeks of intensive targeted antimicrobial therapy and nearly four weeks on ventilator support, repeat PET scans and echocardiograms confirmed complete eradication of the infection.

The multidisciplinary effort was led by PICU specialists Dr. Athar Jamal (Associate Director & Head, PICU) and Dr. Nikita Tripathi, alongside Interventional Radiologists Dr. Rohit Agarwal and Dr. Gaurav, Orthopedic surgeons Dr. Saif N. Shah and Dr. Hatif Q. Siddiqui, Pediatric Cardiologist Dr. Roli Srivastava, Pediatric Anesthesiologist Dr. Farzana, Microbiologist Dr. Bhavna Jain, and Infectious Disease specialist Dr. Susan Philip.