The operating team of NHAK. (Photo Courtesy: Dr Yanthan)
Morung Express News
Kohima | September 25
In a significant development for specialised healthcare in Nagaland, doctors at the Naga Hospital Authority Kohima (NHAK) have successfully performed a brain tumour surgery using an advanced Cavitron Ultrasonic Aspirator (CUSA), marking the first time such a brain tumour operation has been carried out in a government hospital in the state.
The procedure was performed along with another major surgery involving a female patient with gall bladder cancer and liver involvement. Both patients are reported to be recovering well following the operations.
Speaking to The Morung Express about the procedures, Dr Khyothungo Yanthan, Neurosurgeon at NHAK, said the two surgeries were carried out using a CUSA machine brought in by a company for demonstration purposes. The equipment, known as the Cavitron Ultrasonic Aspirator, uses ultrasonic energy to break down and aspirate tissue while helping surgeons preserve surrounding normal tissues and blood vessels.
Dr Yanthan explained that the technology is particularly useful in delicate surgeries involving organs such as the brain and liver. In neurosurgery, where the brain cannot be retracted like other tissues, the ability to selectively remove tumour tissue is especially important, he explained.
“Since the tissues of the brain are very delicate, we cannot retract them. This machine helps us shear and remove the tumour while preferentially leaving the normal tissues and blood vessels around it,” he explained.
The CUSA equipment was brought to NHAK by IndiGra, a Guwahati-based company, as part of a demonstration. The machine is manufactured by a US-based company and is currently used in major government and corporate hospitals outside Nagaland, informed Dr Yanthan.
Dr Yanthan said the availability of the equipment for the demonstration provided an opportunity to perform the two procedures at NHAK.
When asked, he said, the company will take the machine back and that the machine costs around Rs 1 crore, while its maintenance and operation also require significant resources and trained manpower. He also informed that a proposal is being considered for procuring such equipment for the hospital in the future.
He said NHAK already has trained specialists capable of using such advanced equipment, including neurosurgeons and other super-speciality specialists. The main requirement, he noted, is access to the necessary equipment and infrastructure.
When enquired, he said having the machine permanently available at NHAK could reduce the need for patients to travel outside Nagaland for specialised procedures.
“If we have the equipment here, we can provide the treatment here itself,” he said, adding that the hospital already has the trained manpower needed to handle such procedures.
The neurosurgeon also highlighted the outcome of the latest operations. Both patients, he said, had been successfully extubated and were recovering under observation. The brain tumour patient was kept in the ICU for overnight monitoring following the surgery.
Dr Yanthan further said that the successful surgeries should be viewed as a step towards strengthening advanced healthcare services in Nagaland, with the hope that more specialised facilities and equipment can become available at NHAK in the future.
