The hemophiliac kid had developed internal bleeding after a fracture, and was given cuts to his leg to drain it in Nashik; at KEM Hospital, he was given blood-clotting factors
Gifting a bicycle to their three-and-a-half-year-old son Karthik is something Ajay Sampat Kandvi and his wife Lalita will always regret. Karthik fell off the bike and suffered a fracture that led to life-threatening complications.
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(Left) Karthik’s parents Ajay and Lalita. Ajay says Karthik (right) may have problems walking properly post the skin grafting procedure
When he was rushed to the hospital, it was discovered Karthik is a hemophiliac (his blood does not clot). He was taken to a hospital at Nashik, but after over a week of bleeding from his leg, he was brought to KEM Hospital where doctors managed to save him. Karthik fell on May 6 at Nashik. After his fracture was treated, the doctor discharged him from hospital. But soon, internal bleeding started and his right leg swelled, causing him extreme pain.
Cuts to his leg
His parents then took him to Suvarna Hospital, Nashik where doctors gave cuts to his leg on both the sides to make the blood flow out. But this worsened his condition, as the bleeding didn’t stop.
“The doctor told us that he would make minor cuts, but when we went in the ward we saw the cuts were really big. The doctor also made cuts on his upper right leg. Blood was oozing out from all the cuts,” said Ajay.
Dr Ravindra Ingle from Suvarna Hospital said that Karthik’s parents did not tell him about the disorder that led to the severe bleeding. “Generally it takes 5 minutes for bleeding to clot, but in this case, it didn’t stop at all. His right leg stopped moving. It is not about the size of the cut that matters, it’s the disorder, so even if the cuts were small it would have led to the similar situation,” said Dr Ingle.
Brought to KEM
For eight days (May 6-13), Karthik kept bleeding from his leg. Later, a blood test confirmed that he is a haemophiliac. Under the doctor’s recommendation, he was taken to KEM Hospital, the only hospital in Mumbai that provides blood-clotting factors to patients free of cost.
“He was given factor VIII to help in the clotting of the blood. But as the cuts were severe, doctors performed skin grafting by taking skin from his left leg so that the healing is faster. However, he will have problems walking properly,” said Ajay.
Before this incident, Karthik never showed signs of haemophilia. After checking the family history, it was found out that his maternal grand father was haemophiliac and his mother is carrying the gene.
Following this incident, officials of the Haemophilia Society, Mumbai Chapter (HSMC), feel haemophilia checking must be made compulsory before surgery to curb such incidents.
“Thankfully, the child was saved. In cases of major surgeries, checking if a patient is haemophiliac should be made compulsory. The disorder remains hidden for years,” said Ajay Palande, head of HSMC.
Expert says
“If bleeding is out of proportion to the injury, or if it is prolonged bleeding, then doctors should check the bleeding history of the patients along with other members of the family. But many doctors lack proper knowledge about haemophilia, that at times worsens the condition,” said Dr Chandrakala S, associate professor of department of Clinical Haematology, KEM Hospital.
Haemophilia
It is an inherited disorder in which blood doesn’t generally clot. It occurs among males and women are the carriers. Haemophilia A occurs due to deficiency of blood clotting factor VIII, while Haemophilia B occurs due to factor IX.
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