Last night, we introduced you to 34 year old Linda Wade, who has a rare condition known as achalasia. It forces her to throw up all the food she eats, leaving her malnourished and starving. It is a condition that can be life threatening, and more than that, it destroys the victim, leaving them physically ravaged and emotionally depressed because they are no longer able to share in the simple social habit of eating. And that’s where Linda Wade found herself, until the folks at Belize Health Care Partners agreed to do a corrective surgery for free. But that doesn’t mean it’s free of complications; the surgery has never been done in Belize and there’s no telling what could go wrong in this far from standard procedure. That’s why on Monday morning 7NEWS followed her into the operating theatre to see how it went. Keith Swift has the story.
Linda Wade, Undergoing Surgery
“I am happy to know that I will get back a normal life again.”
And an emotional Linda Wade set out on the road to that new life on Monday when she was wheeled into the operating theatre. She’d been unable to digest properly for ten years because of a medical condition known as achalasia. As this x-ray shows, her esophagus is blocked so whatever she eats has nowhere to go but back up through her mouth.
But on Monday morning she underwent surgery at the Healthcare Partners Hospital to fix it. Our cameraman Alex Ellis scrubbed in to tape the entire procedure – being performed for the first time in Belize. We were there as she clenched the hands of a surgical nurse as she was put under anesthesia, a requirement because this is invasive surgery. Surgeon Dr. Venny says it is a straightforward procedure.
Dr., Venny, Surgeon/CEO Health Care Partners
“The surgery basically involves dividing the muscles of the lower
esophagus and you always go about three centimetres on the upper portion of the stomach so that’s basically the process. The esophagus has three layers and in her case we will be dividing just the serum muscular layer and then the muscle and then we will leave the other layer to bulge out. That’s how we will take care
of the problem."
Dr. Venny led a team of 2 doctors, two surgical nurses, and two anaesthesiologists.
[Video of Surgery]
The surgery took all of 90 minutes. Linda wade will recover in a month but she has been suffering for 9 years. Dr. Ervin Gabourel made the diagnosis in 2004. No one knows what causes achalasia but Dr. Gabourel says there are warning signs.
Dr. Ervin Gabourel, Gastroenterologist
“If you see that you are having abnormal symptoms like vomiting after you eat, not being able to swallow properly, not being able to drink, some people come to the doctor complaining that at night when they sleep they feel acid or water brash coming out their mouth you need to consult a doctor for it.”
And important in all that is that the surgery can be performed in Belize.
Dr. Ervin Gabourel,
“This treatment can be had here in
Belize and we at Belize Heathcare Partners offer this service. I know a lot of people don’t know this and they usually go abroad because nobody informs them and this is why we want to make public awareness.”
Dr. Venny,
“In the near future we will be able to do this laparoscopically where recovery will be quicker. With laroscopy surgery they will be able to go home in a day or so whereas in her case, she will be in the hospital three to four days.”
Keith Swift,
She tells me the first thing she wants to eat is fried chicken, will she be able to eat her fried chicken?
Dr. Venny,
“I think I will go easy on the fry chicken. I think she should start out with liquids for the first few days and then gradually increase.”
And after 9 years, a week doesn’t seem that long before she can not only look at – but actually eat that plate of food. Reporting for 7NEWS, Keith Swift.
That was on Monday. Since then, Linda Wade has been released from the hospital, and is at home recovering tonight. We hope to do a follow up on her on a few weeks. Achalasia affects one person in every one-hundred thousand in the United States, so it’s considered very rare. Linda Wade is one of two people known to have it in Belize, but there may be more.
