Another patient undergoing Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) treatment at the SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack succumbed last night.
According to sources, the patient, identified as Annapurna Nayak from Nischintakoili in Cuttack district, was admitted to the hospital on August 29 due to severe lungs infection and she was undergoing ECMO treatment since then. However, she breathed her last late last night.
The deceased became the fourth patient to lose her life while undergoing treatment under ECMO support at the hospital.
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According to reports, Nayak was the first patient at SCB to be shifted to the ECMO unit from the Covid care unit after developing post-COVID complications in her lungs.
No other patient is currently under ECMO treatment at the state’s premier health institute. Earlier, three other patients from Bolangir, Kendrapara and Bhubaneswar have died during the treatment under the critical care support of the ECMO in the hospital.
The Odisha government had launched a dedicated ECMO facility at SCB Medical College and Hospital on August 27, 2021. The facility provides free ECMO treatment to critically ill patients and it is the largest ECMO facility in the eastern part of India.
Earlier, during the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, several critically ill patients were airlifted to other parts of the country due to lack of ECMO treatment facility in Odisha. Taking strong cue from the situation, ECMO machines were also installed at AIIMS-Bhubaneswar and SUM Hospital in the State.
(Edited by Suryakant Jena)