Saudi: Specialist medical teams perform critical surgeries during Hajj season

Specialist medical teams in Makkah have performed 24 open-heart surgeries on pilgrims, the Ministry of Health announced on Monday. According to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA), the ministry also reported that 249 pilgrims underwent cardiac catheterizations and 1,006 received dialysis treatments. Additionally, 4,082 pilgrims were admitted to hospitals and medical centres for essential care.

Since the start of the annual pilgrimage on June 15, more than 142,000 pilgrims have benefited from health services in Makkah and Mina. The services provided included medical and specialized clinics, pharmacies, dialysis centres, intensive care units and isolation units.

Critical Air Evacuations to Jeddah

SPA reported that a medical team from Ajyad Emergency Hospital, part of the Makkah Al-Mukarramah Health Cluster, successfully saved a 53-year-old Egyptian pilgrim who arrived with chest pain. After diagnosing a life-threatening heart clot, the patient was swiftly transferred to King Abdullah Medical City in Makkah for specialized treatment.

Two other critical cases involved a 62-year-old Egyptian and a 48-year-old Tunisian, both suffering from severe pneumonia leading to respiratory failure. They were evacuated by helicopter to the King Abdullah Medical Complex in Jeddah.

Dr. Mahdi Othman, head of the Intensive Care Department at KAMC, said, "Both cases contracted severe pneumonia while performing the Hajj rituals for this year 1445 AH, which led to respiratory failure, and then they needed an extracorporeal membrane oxygenation life support machine and they were admitted to the intensive care unit under intensive medical observation and close follow-up."