UAE: Expat with little blood flow to brain undergoes life-saving surgery

A 60-year-old Bangladeshi expat has undergone a life-saving surgery after he was found to have multiple severe blocks in the arteries supplying blood to his brain.

Layqot Ali, who works at Dubai Municipality, was diagnosed with life-threatening severe occlusion in his carotid arteries by doctors at Aster Hospital, Qusais. Carotid arteries are major blood vessels in the neck that supply blood to the brain, neck, and face.

"There is a pair of carotid arteries on both sides of the neck. Ali had a 100 per cent block in one of his arteries. Two other arteries had 90 and 80 per cent block, respectively. So, there was little blood flow to his brain, causing dizziness and other problems," said Dr Sandeep Burathoki, a consultant interventional neuroradiologist at Aster Hospital, Qusais.

Ali, a chronic smoker with hypertension, had complained of dizziness, blurred vision, and severe headaches for over a year. He went to the hospital after falling from a motorbike near his home in Qusais.

"I was sitting on a motorbike. Suddenly, I felt my head spinning and fell crashing to the ground. My friends, who were around, picked me up, and it took me some time to regain consciousness," he said.

Dr Burathoki had ordered a catheter angiography to confirm the diagnosis. He added it was a miracle that Ali did not suffer a stroke with such severe blocks in every carotid artery.

"He came to the hospital and diagnosed the condition at the right time. Otherwise, the consequence could have been fatal. Reinstating blood flow to the brain was critical. So, we subjected him to an endovascular procedure to remove the blocks using a stent. The procedure was a success, and Ali responded to the treatment well."