When jaundice continued, the shocking truth came out! He underwent surgery at 90 days old

Born in Denizli , Aslan Zeyd İldam was diagnosed with Biliary Atresia (BA), a congenital absence of bile ducts, due to prolonged neonatal jaundice. Coming to İzmir at 88 days old, Aslan Zeyd regained his health after surgery at a private hospital. Ali İldam, who is also the father of 2.5-year-old Mehmet Han and earns his living as a blacksmith, stated that he and his second son Aslan Zeyd went through a difficult process. Explaining that the disease was difficult to diagnose, İldam said, "We could not understand the problem when Aslan was born. He had jaundice. He also had jaundice in his eyes. We visited a few doctors in Denizli. Some tests were performed and it was understood that he had a problem with his liver. We were referred to Pamukkale University and diagnosed with BA. But we could not start his treatment."

'WE GAVE UP HOPE AT A TIME'

Noting that they saw a visible improvement in the child after the operation in Izmir, Ildam continued his words as follows:

"We had given up hope for a while. We were in a mess. We saw the hospital in Izmir on social media. When they arrived, we felt relieved and entrusted our lives to them. How did our child get here? Even his eyes were yellow. His toilet was white. They didn't know what to do in Denizli. The problem with his gallbladder was treated here. After the surgery, his condition got better. Now he is fed with special food. God has forgiven him. Let's see his military service and marriage, God willing."

'WE ARE RETURNING TO NORMAL OVER TIME'

Selime İldam, who said that as a mother, she never left her son's side for a moment, said, "It was a difficult process. We were desperate. It seemed like we had nothing to hold on to. My husband found this hospital. The doctors here were very good for us both psychologically and for our son's health. He is in good health now. We thank them endlessly. We are happy. We stayed here for 3 weeks and returned to Denizli. We come for check-ups every month. We are getting back to normal in time. He is on very good terms with his brother. He missed his brother too."

DANGER OF PROGRESSIVE CIRRHOSIS

Pediatric Surgeon Op. Dr. Aliye Kandırıcı, who performed the surgery on Aslan Zeyd, stated that early diagnosis is of great importance in BA, saying, "Aslan Zeyd is a little patient of ours, but despite his young age, he had a serious illness. He was 88 days old when he came to us. Since bile cannot be excreted in these patients, progressive cirrhosis can occur in the liver. As a result, they can become candidates for liver failure and transplantation in the future. We catch these patients early and help them have a more comfortable surgical process."

'LIVER TRANSPLANTATION MAY BE POSSIBLE IN THE FUTURE'

Dr. Kandırıcı, who explained that Aslan Zeyd was diagnosed with BA in Denizli but it was too late, added:

"When they came for the surgery, he was 88 days old. We quickly completed the surgery preparations on the 90th day and operated on him. The surgery was successful. He responded well to the treatments and we discharged him 10 days later. We call neonatal jaundice 'physiological jaundice', but in jaundice that lasts longer than 14 days, it is necessary to investigate other diseases, especially surgical diseases. When it is late, the success of the surgery decreases. When the diagnosis is made on the 30th day, the success rate of the surgery is 70 percent , while it drops to 50 percent on the 60th day and 10 percent on the 90th day. Patients with prolonged jaundice should be evaluated by pediatricians as soon as it is detected. Surgery should be investigated afterwards. When BA is suspected, diagnosis and treatment should be started as soon as possible. It is considered too late for our patient. The success rate was 10 percent, but Aslan's response to the treatment made us happy. We do not completely eliminate the damage that occurs in the liver. Until the age of 8-10 "We can manage this way, but later on, our patients may become transplant candidates. We aim to help them go through this process more comfortably and prepare for transplantation. Liver transplantation may be possible in the future."