A 15-year-old student suffering from episodes of dangerously rapid heartbeat and fainting has successfully undergone a specialised cardiac procedure at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), following what cardiologist Dr Suruj Harrichand described as one of the most challenging cases of his career.
The procedure was performed on Tuesday at the Caribbean Heart Institute (CHI) Catheterisation Laboratory at GPHC and involved the treatment of Wolff-Parkinson-White (WPW) syndrome, a condition caused by an abnormal electrical connection in the heart.
Dr Harrichand, a cardiologist, electrophysiologist and interventional cardiology fellow in training, said the complexity of the case was linked to the location of the patient’s accessory electrical pathway, which was situated in the left posterior region of the heart, as well as the patient’s young age.
The teenager had reportedly experienced heart rates approaching or exceeding 200 beats per minute, accompanied by fainting spells, sudden weakness and episodes in which she would fall.
According to her father, the symptoms occurred as often as three times per week and had begun affecting her schoolwork.
The student is expected to sit the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examinations next year and hopes to pursue a career in marine biology.
After her parents provided consent, the patient underwent an electrophysiology study and catheter ablation, a minimally invasive procedure used to identify and treat abnormal electrical pathways responsible for certain heart rhythm disorders.
Dr Harrichand said the procedure was completed successfully, bringing relief to the patient’s family, who had been awaiting the outcome outside the operating theatre.
“These procedures are curative and allow for a fast recovery, with patients generally being discharged the following day,” he said.
Dr Harrichand is currently pursuing advanced training in cardiology and electrophysiology under a Government scholarship.
He is in Guyana for approximately six weeks for personal reasons but was asked by Presidential Adviser on Healthcare Modernisation and clinical electrophysiologist, Dr Mahendra Carpen, to assist in reducing the number of patients awaiting electrophysiology studies and ablation procedures.
The procedures are being conducted by a local multidisciplinary team at the CHI Catheterisation Laboratory. The team includes Dr Carpen, Dr Harrichand, electrophysiology technician Jason Solomon and nursing staff members Jeffers, Moore, Harry and Khan.
Patients with heart rhythm disorders, including atrioventricular nodal re-entrant tachycardia (AVNRT), atrioventricular re-entrant tachycardia (AVRT) and Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, may benefit from electrophysiology studies and catheter ablation, depending on their individual medical assessments.
Dr Harrichand said he has performed more than 37 electrophysiology studies in Guyana and has served as the first operator in more than 200 procedures involving pacemakers, implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICDs) and cardiac resynchronisation therapy (CRT) devices.
Before the latest procedure, his youngest electrophysiology patient was a 12-year-old whose abnormal electrical pathway was located on the right side of the heart. That condition was also successfully treated.
While the recent case was completed using a catheter-based approach, Dr Harrichand noted that other techniques may be considered in more complex or unsuccessful cases. These may include transseptal access to the left side of the heart or advanced three-dimensional cardiac mapping, depending on the patient’s condition, the availability of specialised technology and appropriate surgical support.
The successful treatment of the teenager adds to the growing range of specialised cardiac services being provided locally, reducing the need for some patients to seek advanced care overseas.
