CHENNAI: Coming to the aid of a 14-year-old girl from Cuddalore who has been living with a catheter since a very young age due to problems with bladder control since birth, doctors at the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital performed a rare and advanced surgical procedure successfully.
The patient had been suffering from urinary incontinence since childhood and relied on a catheter for urination. Following a urodynamic study, she was diagnosed with neurogenic bladder, a condition caused by nerve dysfunction that impairs bladder control.
The doctors initially recommended sacral neuromodulation, a specialised surgical procedure generally available only in select private hospitals in cities such as Mumbai, where the treatment cost was estimated at around Rs 25 lakh.
Unable to afford the procedure, her parents approached the Tamil Nadu government for assistance. Subsequently, the patient was admitted to the Institute of Urology at the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital, where a team of doctors, under the supervision of the hospital Dean Dr K Shantharam and medical superintendent Dr Bhaskar, took up her case.
After a detailed evaluation, the medical team decided to carry out the surgery in two stages. The first stage was performed by a multidisciplinary team comprising urologists and neurosurgeons, including Dr Thiruvarul, Dr Ezhilsundar, Dr Raghavendran, and Dr Meera Raghavan. The initial phase yielded positive results, with the patient able to pass urine normally without assistance.
Following this, doctors proceeded with the second stage, during which a medical device, along with a battery designed to function for up to 15 years, was implanted. After the surgery, the patient regained the ability to urinate independently with the support of the implanted device, marking a life-changing recovery.
The entire procedure cost approximately Rs 7.5 lakh, which was fully funded by the State government. Doctors described the case as a major milestone, noting that this is the first time a sacral neuromodulation surgery has been successfully performed in a government hospital in South India.