After five weeks of fighting to save the prime minister's brain after a massive stroke, Ariel Sharon's doctors moved their attention to the comatose Sharon's stomach Saturday, after an early morning CT scan revealed that his digestive tract had been seriously damaged by what doctors believed was a small blood clot, which surgeons were attempting to locate and remove. Hadassah University Ein Kerem Hospital official spokeswoman Yael Bossem-Levy told the growing crowd of local and international journalists assembled outside the hospital that the Prime Minister was rushed to emergency surgery at 11:30 AM. Bossem-Levy described Sharon's condition as critical, with his life in danger.
After the scan, it was decided to operate on Sharon immediately, Bossem-Levy said in a statement. The operation was expected to last between three and six hours, she said. A Kadima source close to Sharon told the Associated Press that the operation seemed to be "going well." Channel 10, meanwhile, reported that doctors have removed a section of the prime minister's intestine.
| Not entirely unexpected: people with atherosclerotic disease frequently have it in multiple locations, not just the brain. Intestinal arterial blockage can occur and, if undetected, can be devestating. Many elderly have a little of this and it can resolve without problems, but a complete blockage can result in ischemic or infarcted bowel. That's a surgical emergency. |
It is still unclear what caused Sharon's latest deterioration. Bossem-Levy said only that the abdominal scan revealed an obstruction in the blood flow to the prime minister's intestines. It was not clear whether Sharon's doctors had stopped the regular dose of blood-thinning medication they had administered since Sharon's first stroke in December. Doctors administered the anticoagulants following the first stroke, which was caused by a small blood clot in a cranial artery, and later admitted that the anticoagulants made it more difficult for them to stop the bleeding from the later hemorrhagic stroke on January 4.
Earlier this month, a feeding tube was inserted into the prime minister's abdomen via keyhole surgery (laparoscopy). Prof. Charles Weissman, chief of anesthesiology, had told The Jerusalem Post that the change in the means of feeding reduces the risk of infection, just as the tracheostomy performed a few weeks ago minimized infection by replacing the breathing tube down his mouth and trachea with a tube attached to a hole in the front of his neck.
| It's also an admission that Sharon isn't doing well: the tracheostomy and feeding tube (gastrostomy or PEG) suggest that recovery is slow and will be substantially incomplete. That means there is increasing risk of late complications. |
Sharon has undergone brain scans from time to time to check whether there was swelling and bleeding. The brain scans had not shown changes, but Sharon has failed to regain consciousness.
Sharon suffered the massive stroke a day before he was to check into Hadassah for what was described as a minor heart procedure. The major stroke came two weeks after he had suffered a mild stroke. Doctors have come under fire from critics who questioned whether Sharon should have been treated with massive doses of anticoagulants after his first stroke, which was caused by a small blood clot in a cranial artery. Doctors admitted that the anticoagulants made it more difficult for them to stop the bleeding from the later hemorrhagic stroke.
The extensive bleeding and the lengthy operations Sharon underwent to stop it have led experts to conclude that he must have suffered severe brain damage and was unlikely to regain consciousness. If he does awaken, most say, the chances of his regaining meaningful cognition or activity are slim.