Thomas (name changed) was a 17-month-old baby when he was diagnosed with long QT syndrome – a heart rhythm disorder that causes fast and irregular heartbeat. The condition would make him vulnerable to frequent loss of consciousness and an increased risk of cardiac arrest.
While he was not keeping well since birth, it took the family – from a village in Tamil Nadu – more than a year to recognise the actual reason for his deteriorating health. With a monthly income of less than Rs 15,000, the family neither had the financial resources to seek private healthcare nor a definite medical assistance from any government centre.
After months of worrying, Thomas' parents were finally referred to Dr Vijayakumar from Coimbatore. He suggested the immediate need for an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) to be placed on Thomas' heart to regulate the pace of heartbeat. It was also a one-of-a-kind surgery, given that the device had to be placed on Thomas' heart, instead of inside it, due to his age.