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Web Desk — As medical treatment advances in the country, a 32-year-old patient was allowed to go home in a rare instance just hours after undergoing an awake brain operation.
Dr Akbar Ali Khan, a neurosurgeon at Maroof International Hospital Islamabad, performed the surgery. The hospital has expertise in minimally invasive brain and spine surgery. The patient named Asim was released from the hospital the same day he was operated upon.
Doctors at Shifa International Hospital in Islamabad and Aga Khan Hospital in Karachi, in recent years, have performed awake brain surgeries, also known as a craniotomy, but most patients are not discharged the same day after the operation.
Dr Khan said awake brain tumour surgery was a complex neurosurgical technique that he had been practising for the last four years. “Through this technique, the tumour is removed, saving the patient from brain damage and paralysis.”
“At present, Howard University in the US and a hospital in Toronto, Canada, have been performing awake brain surgeries in which patients are discharged the same day,” he said.
Is Awake Brain Surgery Affordable?
Answering a question, he said that traditional surgeries required patients to stay in the hospital for at least five days, which increased the cost considerably.
He said as Pakistan was a developing country, many patients could not afford brain surgery. However, awake brain tumour surgery will allow them to get treatment at a much lower cost, he said.
Due to the advanced nature of the surgery, he said hospitals should consider it because it reduces patients’ hospital stays and makes the surgery affordable for a large number of patients. “It is a delicate surgery requiring mild anaesthesia and small cuts,” he explained.
How common is awake brain surgery?
A total of 50 to 60 awake craniotomies are performed every year at The Ottawa Hospital, most of which are performed to remove brain tumors that are close to speech and movement centers.
How long does an awake craniotomy take?
The length of time you spend awake depends on how large your tumor is, where it is located, and what type of symptoms you had before surgery.
Awake craniotomy success rate
More than 75% of patients undergoing awake craniotomies at Moffitt Cancer Center return home within 24 hours or less. In addition, 95% of tumors are safely resected by the neurosurgery team.
There are no pain receptors in the brain itself, so awake brain surgery is possible. You will not feel any pain or discomfort during the operation because your scalp will be anesthetized.
