in

Coronavirus UAE: Dubai Airport baggage handler brought back from the brink of death from COVID-19


Like Our Facebook Page For Latest News

Dubai: For someone who was semi-comatose on a ventilator and suffering seizures, it was a miracle to see Mohammad Abdul Basheer walk out of hospital on his own without any oxygen support.

The 52-year-old Dubai Airport porter had been a textbook case of a critically ill COVID-19 patient and is fortunate to have survived.

Being a diabetic with hypertension and high cholesterol, Basheer grew from being moderately ill to severe with a cytokine storm in his lungs and clots in his brain.

“I am so thankful and merciful to God that I am perfectly fine today after being in a dark tunnel for over a month and half,” he said. “I have hardly any memory of those days as I was sedated. Whenever conscious I thought I would not survive and meet my wife and children in Bangladesh. My deepest gratitude goes to the doctors and nurses at the Intensive Care Unit of the COVID ward of Prime Hospital, who literally pulled me out of the jaws of death with such round the clock care,” he added.

Mohammad Abdul Basheer, survived COVID-19 after being in ICU for 45 days
Image Credit: Supplied

On April 6, Basheer went to his supervisor and asked for a second COVID-19 test as he had classic symptoms of fever and breathlessness.

“In my job as a porter, I am exposed to international passengers and so many people each day. I had the onset of symptoms in the first week of April, but my earlier tests were negative. However, by April 6, I was feeling distinctly tired and breathless and had fever. This time, the test result that came in on April 8 was positive and my condition had further deteriorated and I was taken to hospital,” said the father of three.

Doctor’s opinion

Dr Dirar Abdallah, the head of ICU and consultant in Internal Medicine at Prime Hospital said, “While we followed the medical protocol as per the Dubai Health Authority (DHA) guidelines, there is no way of knowing what really worked in the case of Basheer. When he came in on April 8, we tried to keep him out of the ICU and mechanical ventilator by providing him oxygen support through a canula. But Basheer not only had diabetes, hypertension and high cholesterol, he also had a respiratory condition called sleep apnea where he required a special assistance during the night when he slept. The next day his deterioration was quite bad and we had to shift him into the ICU, sedate him and intubate him for mechanical ventilation. Until then, hydrochloroquinine was an acceptable medication and we gave him that, plus antivirals. But what really saved him was the immune suppressant injections as he was undergoing a cytokine storm. Normally these injections are given to patients of Rheumatoid Arthritis when their immune system goes into overdrive. In Basheer’s case his lungs were under attack by this own immune system and the injections help subside the storm.”

Dr Abdallah added that a combination of balanced nutrition and hydration given to the patient through a tube, plus round the clock management of his acute conditions was key to his recovery. Basheer was weaned off the ventilator but then suffered brain seizures.

In 12 days he looked like he was recovering. However, within a week he suffered a seizure. An MRI revealed a clot in his brain. This is again a classic symptom of COVID-19 as patients find blood clot formation on their limbs, in the lungs as well as in the brain.

“We did not put him on the ventilator but worked on his blood clots. One of his sides had gone lax like in a stroke. But he recovered in next 10 days,” added Dr Abdallah.

By May 10, Basheer had a marked improvement. He had tested negative for COVID-19 but was on a long road to recovery.

His muscles had weakened, but the medical team had taken care to provide physical rehabilitation, emotional support and the right nutrition and hydration along with oxygen support through a canula.

Dr Abdallah added: “We discharged him on May 22 after 45 days and it was an absolute delight to see him walk out of the hospital on his feet. He came in for a consultation on May 28 and though weak, is stable and on a road to recovery.”

Basheer is on sick leave until June 20 after which he will be released.

“My friends in my room are very helpful and cooking food for me,” he said. “If flights reopen, I might visit my home in Bangladesh and meet my family as my wife and children have been worried. I will overcome this and regain my strength and be back picking up luggage soon,” he added.

What is a cytokine storm?

Cytokines are proteins in our immune system that are programmed to destroy any alien invasion. However, in many cases when the immune system is overwhelmed, it produces more of these protein bodies than required and these turn rogue, turn invaders and attack the healthy cells of the body. This happens in autoimmune diseases such as lupus or Rheumatoid Arthritis. In COVID-19 positive cases, it happens very easily. During a severe COVID-19 infection, doctors report cytokine storms or over production of this protein. The immune system literally goes on the rampage, invading healthy tissues of the lungs. This leads to inflammation, fluid retention, inability of the blood vessels to carry oxygen, bleeding and clotting in the capillaries and veins that deprives major organs of blood and oxygen, resulting in a drop in blood pressure and organ failure and possible death.

Like Our Facebook Page For Latest News

Coronavirus UAE Update – Live Covid 19 Statu

Source by [author_name]

Visit UAE Top Secrets

Advertisements


The post Coronavirus UAE: Dubai Airport baggage handler brought back from the brink of death from COVID-19 appeared first on The Wealth Land.

What do you think?

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

GIPHY App Key not set. Please check settings

[100%OFF]Digital Marketing Masterclass – 23 Courses in 1

[100%OFF]Robot Framework with Python All You Need To Know