AIIMS Doctors save life of two-year-old child who stopped breathing onboard

Five doctors of the All India Institute Of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, on Sunday, saved the life of a one and half year old female child who suddenly stopped breathing thirty minutes after a flight took off from Bengaluru for Delhi. As the doctors were also traveling in the same flight, they examined the child and started her treatment immediately after a distress call was announced on Vistara airline flight UK-814 to seek medical help. 

The hospital said that the child had underwent an open intracardiac repair surgery in Bangalore three weeks ago for complex congenital heart disease (Dextrocardia, situs inversus and total anomalous pulmonary venous connection). After the flight took off, the parents started saying that their child was not responding.

After the distress call was announced, the child was taken to the rear zone of the plane and was carefully assessed by the doctors. The child was found to be cyanotic, not breathing and the pulses were absent. The heartbeat was not palpable. “Immediately according to pediatrics resuscitation protocol, CPR was started. The airway was maintained using three maneuvers- head tilt, jaw thrust and chin lift and positive pressure ventilation was initiated using on board available face masks and pediatric oropharyngeal airway. Chest compressions were given according to pediatric life support protocol”, said the hospital.

The hospital said that, “In the extreme harsh circumstances with limited availability, an I.V line was secured in the first attempt and emergency drugs (Adrenaline) as per weight of child every 3-5 mins. On board available AED was skillfully utilized to deliver cardiac shock, and further CPR was continued”. The ROSC (return of spontaneous circulation” was achieved after ~45 minutes of CPR in the form of palpable brachial pulse in the child.

As no ECG/Oxygen saturation probe was available to monitor heart rate and saturation on board, the flight was routed to nearest airport at Nagpur and the child was successfully handed over with stable hemodynamic parameters to the pediatrician there.

 The team of doctors included Dr Navdeep Kaur- SR Anesthesia, Dr Damandeep Singh- SR Cardiac Radiology, Dr Rishab Jain- Ex SR AIIMS Radiology, Dr Oishika- SR OBG and Dr Avichala Taxak- SR Cardiac Radiology.