Expat wakes from month-long coma in Dubai, gets new lease of life thanks to doctors

Dubai - Mujeeb is regaining his full brain functions, and gradually getting back his strength.

It was a regular day at work for 41-year-old Indian driver Mujeeb at Atlantis Hotel in the Palm. Suddenly, he felt a splitting headache and was rushed to Al Zahra Hospital Dubai. Mujeeb had actually suffered a severe hemorrhagic stroke. He went into a coma for 30 days and after much medical care and attention has got a new lease of life.
"I felt a dreadful headache that I had never experienced before. I was later told that it developed into a seizure and my colleagues called the ambulance which got me to the hospital," said Mujeeb.
"Luckily, he was promptly transferred to us where our ER doctors conducted CT scan for his brain and brain arteries revealing severe hemorrhagic stroke caused by a brain aneurysm," explained Dr Mohamed Khamis, critical care specialist and primary physician of the patient.

Mujeeb was put on a ventilator and admitted at the ICU to stabilise his condition. "He was operated upon for an emergency insertion of a drain in his brain to remove excess fluid and blood and for the pressure in his brain to be closely monitored. The same day, he underwent another procedure to repair his brain aneurysm that caused the bleeding," pointed out Dr Hussein Al Rahma, head of critical care and emergency medicine at Al Zahra Hospital Dubai. "Unfortunately, despite the two procedures, the patient's brain pressure was still high. Four days after his admission, he had another surgery to put a second drain on the other side of the brain to remove the excess fluid still accumulating there," Al Rahma said.
Mujeeb did not regain consciousness and was in a coma for 30 days in the ICU and developed complications of severe brain infection. "Even though he was given aggressive IV antibiotic therapy, his case needed local injection of antibiotics inside the brain to fight the brain infection he developed. "Because of the long-term ventilation, he needed a tracheostomy, an incision in the neck in order to place a breathing tube into a person's windpipe, to avoid the complications of prolonged ventilation" said Dr Khamis.
As Mujeeb started to slowly regain his consciousness and the ventilator was finally removed, he was shifted to a regular room to continue his care and rehabilitation, under the supervision of a neurologist, after he spent 55 days in the ICU.
"I am very grateful to all the doctors who supervised my care during this period. I know I was given a second chance to live my life and for that I feel very lucky," said Mujeeb.
Mujeeb is regaining his full brain functions, and gradually getting back his strength as he finishes his rehabilitation programme at the hospital. He is getting prepared to be repatriated to his home country to reunite with his family.

• Dubai
• India