City docs remove six pellets from a woman's left foot

58-year-old Jalgaon resident had gone to a local bank, where security service gun accidentally injured her

Doctors at a city hospital successfully treated 58-year-old Shobha Mali, a victim of accidental gunshot injury. The Jalgaon resident had gone to a local bank where the service gun of the security guard fired accidentally and she sustained grave injuries in her ankle and leg.

The bullet passed through the leg of another victim and landed around her ankle on the left foot. The incident took place earlier last month and she was brought to the hospital following her injury.

Ateam of doctors at Saishree Hospital in Aundh performed a complex surgery on her wounded leg in the last week of August. While performing the surgery, the doctors were shocked to find six pellets in her left leg, which were meticulously removed. “After she suffered the injury, we took my mother to a nearby hospital where they provided basic first aid and asked us to take her to a tertiary care hospital. One of our relatives then suggested we go to Saishree Hospital,” informed Sandip Mali, the patient’s son.

Due to the gunshot, Shobha sustained multiple injuries in the region around her ankle and foot on her left leg, with pellets embedded inside. The patient was rushed to Pune for a complex emergency surgery as she complained of severe pain and was unable to walk, said the doctors. The team of doctors — Dr Neeraj Adkar, joint replacement surgeon, Dr Mangesh Patil, trauma surgeon, and Dr Trupti Pare, anaesthetist, successfully performed the two-hour-long complex surgery. Shobha was discharged on Monday.

Elaborating on the procedure, Dr Patil said, “When the patient arrived, the bullets were still logged in her ankle region. It was a very rare and unique case for us, with a high risk of infection involved. In such cases, there are chances of lead poisoning (metalosis, meaning poisoning due to metallic foreign object in the body). We examined the reports and clinical condition of the patient and immediately decided to remove all the pellets to avoid any further complications.”

Under fluoroscopy guidance, six pellets were removed from the patient’s ankle and foot under regional anaesthesia, said the doctors.

Talking about the surgery, Dr Adkar said, “Gunshot injuries are a serious type of trauma and the challenge was to remove all the pellets from her ankle without damaging any adjacent tissues and save the patient’s affected limb. While removing the pellets from her leg, we had to be very cautious as they were close to her blood vessels. The procedure was done very meticulously, and we were successful in saving Shobha’s limb.”

Sandip said, “We had lost all hope, but when we came to here and the doctors told me about the surgery, my faith was restored. I am very thankful to all the doctors of the hospital for saving my mother’s life. She is still in pain but has slowly started walking.”

Prof Dr Rajeshwari Vhora, who heads the emergency medicine department at Jehangir Hospital, informed, “During such procedures, patients have to be reassured as their blood pressure shoots up due to panic and reassurance helps lower it. The injured limbs have to be immobilised as it would cause further damage due to mobility. If the patient shows signs of bleeding, it has to be stopped by using a cloth and shifted to a nearest hospital.”“Following the surgery, the sugar level of the patients has to be controlled as this would avoid infection. The patient has to undergo rigorous physiotherapy, as immobility for long duration can cause deep vein thrombosis. A regular follow-up is mandatory as in such cases some patients also need to undergo a second surgery for repairing tendons,” added Dr Vhora.