MADURAI: Thanking the doctors and all the para-medical staff at the Government Rajaji Hospital for saving their child, the parents of three-year-old Varunesh said that it was a rebirth for their son.
On November 12, Varunesh was admitted to the GRH in a critical condition after he was suspected to have consumed some poisonous liquid. Varunesh, who was left at the Anganwadi by his elder sister, had spotted a beverage bottle and consumed the liquid, not knowing that it was acid meant to clean toilets. He is the son of Chinna Muniandi, a casual worker, and Valarmathi, who runs a small shop in Vellayampatti Periakulam, a hamlet near Alanganallur. The couple have two children -- a daughter and a son.
Only after diagnosis, did the team of doctors realised that the victim had not consumed poison as suspected by the parents. Investigation suggested that the Anganwadi supervisor Kousalya had kept the acid in a soft drink bottle. She was placed under suspension for dereliction of duty.
Meanwhile, the team of doctors gave a multi-pronged treatment as the little boy had breathing problems. Resporatory support was provided through tracheostomy. “By inserting a tube through the windpipe, which enabled opening of the restricted airway, breathing was made easy,” they noted.
When he was admitted to the intensive care unit, the doctors were clueless and were made to believe that the child might have consumed poison. However, a perfect diagnosis and sustained monitoring round-the-clock for over a fortnight successfully led to the patient’s recovery.
Commending the team of doctors, including Mathiarasan, Nagendran, Ganesh Prabhu, Guna, Murugesh, Vijay Anand, Anurekha and Ranjith, GRH Dean M. R. Vairamuthu Raju appealed to the parents to be more vigilant in taking care of their children and urged them not to leave the young ones in isolation. The paediatricians said that parents should ensure that acid like substance or any sharp objects were kept away from the eyes of children. By doing so, they could prevent such freak accidents, which, when neglected, might turn dangerous.
