Malaysia's First Mechanical Heart Recipient Undergoes Minor Surgery

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 18 (Bernama) -- Muhammad Fikri Nor Azmi, Malaysia's first recipient of an Implantable Ventricular Assist Device (IVAD) or better known as mechanical heart, underwent a minor surgery at the National Heart Institute (IJN) due to shortness of breath.
Muhammad Fikri, 15, developed sporadic episodes of shortness of breath after his home leave on Oct 10 and it was noticed by the Ventricular Assist Device (VAD) team, IJN said in a statement, Tuesday.
It said initial investigations showed the mechanical heart was functioning well and Muhammad Fikri's cardiac status was stable.
"However, routine chest x-rays showed he had a collection of air pockets surrounding the left lung. As a precautionary measure, the VAD team decided to explore the left chest surgically and the two-hour operation was performed at 5pm yesterday," it said.
The surgery was successful and no problems were encountered, it said.
"Muhammad Fikri is now recuperating well at the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and he will be discharged to the ward in the next few days.
"The team is hopeful and anticipated that he will be able to spend his Hari Raya with family, the statement said.
Muhammad Fikri was on the heart donor waiting list since March and in July he went for IVAD.
He has been responding well to treatments and medications while waiting to undergo a heart transplant surgery, it added.