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London:
A doctor of Indian origin blasted kidney stones with laser in a
highly risky operation and saved a five-year-old boy from certain
death.
Benjamin White faced death through renal failure after developing
16 kidney stones, some as large as four cm in diameter.
Until now surgeons faced great difficulties in removing kidney
stones from young children with lasers because the laser tubes
were too large, reports the Daily Mail.
So the doctor, consultant paediatric urologist Prasad Godbole, who
works at Sheffield Children's Hospital, used a pioneering new
laser fibre, the width of a hair, which he inserted into
Benjamin's back.
He used the fibre to deliver a high-energy blast of laser heat,
which pulverised the kidney stones. Currently, Godbole is the only
one in Britain to perform the risky technique.
Godbole said Benjamin's stones were "surprisingly large" and
admitted that the keyhole technique carried a "high risk" if he
were to make an error.
Benjamin's grateful father Daniel White, 35, a bank manager from
Northampton, praised Godbole for his "fantastic" work.
He said: "When we brought him to Sheffield they were expecting to
see just a few stones but when they looked at him, his kidneys
were like a brick wall."
"Benjamin's kidneys were so bad he was going into renal failure.
We were faced with potential of him dying and were so scared he
wouldn't make it."
"Prasad told Benjamin he would play a game of space invaders with
his kidneys, he even said that he would try to beat his high
score."
"His level of skill and commitment was fantastic, he made the
whole horrific process much easier for all of us," Daniel added.
Benjamin underwent persistent urine infections from January last
year and it is now believed that he has suffered from kidney
stones since birth.
In February this year, he underwent his first keyhole surgery
using the technique, which took six hours and cleared 95 percent
of the stones from his left kidney.
A stent was also fitted to his right kidney and this was removed
in April, when further stones were taken out of his urethra.
In June, Godbole performed the technique again, taking three hours
with Benjamin under general anaesthetic to remove stones from his
right kidney.
Benjamin undergoes one final operation Wednesday in which Godbole
will be extracting the remaining stones from his right kidney.
The young schoolboy is expected to make a full recovery at home
with his father Daniel, his mother Stephanie, 39, and brother
Samuel, 18 months.
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