Teen saved after Delhi hospital performs complicated facial surgery

(Image for representational purposes only)

New Delhi: Successfully finishing a complex facial surgery, doctors at Fortis Hospital in Delhi have proved that nothing is impossible.

The surgery was performed on a 14-year-old boy whose neck and face were impaled by a metal fence while he was playing in a park.

A class nine student, Saksham Gadia was chasing a ball in a park, when in an attempt to jump over a fence, the teenager lost his footing. He fell, his head hitting the grill which pierced him below the right jawbone, breaking it into two.

The consequent impact resulted in the impalement of his neck and face. He was stuck in this position, with the grill entering his mouth, from the neck and breaking his jawbone.

"When he was brought to the hospital, his jaw bone was fractured with displacement of both ends. He was also bleeding profusely from his neck and mouth," Associate Consultant (Department of Plastic, Cosmetic and Reconstructive Surgery) Rajat Gupta, said in a statement.

"We ligated his bleeding vessels, irrigated his wound and cleaned it off debris. The wound was repaired in layers, leaving behind a drain at neck. His lower jaw bone fragments were replaced in position and held temporarily with arch bars and wires," explained Richie Gupta, Senior Consultant (Department of Plastic, Aesthetic & Reconstructive Surgery).

"Three days later, via an internal approach, plating and fixation of his lower jaw was done under general anaesthesia," Gupta added.

Calling it a miraculous escape, Richie said, "Had the grill pierced him anywhere else within a few centimeters from the affected area, it could have been fatal."

Saksham has been recovering well under regular check-up with his doctors.

(With IANS inputs)