As the sun rose on the first day of the new year, the first Indian to have undergone a robotically assisted heart surgery was on his way home. Dr B C Das, who was operated upon by the robot ‘heart surgeon’ da Vinci on December 14 in New Delhi, reached his Jagmohan Nagar home in Bhubaneswar by 5 a.m., a time when some were still partying while others were recovering from the excesses of the night before. The 30-hour train journey doesn’t appear to have fatigued Das: by 10 a.m., he was back at work at the College of Veterinary Science and Animal Husbandry, where he heads the Pathology Department.Das remembers nothing about the revolutionary operation, conducted by Dr Naresh Trehan at the Escorts Heart Institute and Research Centre, since he was under sedation. All he recalls is a masked Trehan asking him before the operation: ‘‘Can you recognise me?’’ His view of Da Vinci was blocked by machines.What Das does know is that he kept his date with medical history because another patient didn’t have the heart for the experiment. ‘‘This patient, who lives near New Delhi, didn’t agree to be operated upon by a robot. After my surgery, he insisted that since my case was a success, there was no need for him to undergo the same operation,’’ Das told The Indian Express.Das first experienced chest pains on November 16 but, typically, ignored them. He finally consulted a cardiac specialist when his condition worsened. After tests revealed that he had a blockage in his artery, Das consulted Dr Ashok Seth at Escorts, who suggested that he undergo an angioplasty.‘‘Dr Trehan then asked me to undergo a coronary bypass because he felt that the problem might recur after an angioplasty,’’ Das said. In a happy coincidence, an international heart symposium was being held in the capital, and Trehan suggested that Das be the test case for the robotic surgery.‘‘I had no apprehensions even though I knew it was an experiment,’’ said Das. ‘‘All I insisted was that Dr Trehan conduct the surgery. He assured me that even though robotically assisted surgery was making its debut in India, it had been successfully conducted overseas.’’What also helped iron out Das’s worries is his profession: a Ph.D in veterinary science, his faith in Trehan and the Rs 5-crore robotic wonder was unshakeable. Created by the US Defence Department to allow doctors to remotely operate in battlefield hospitals, there are less than 100 da Vincis in Europe and the United States. Once it is mastered, the robot should slash hospitalisation time by more than 75%, reduce trauma, surgical damage and the risk of infection.Fame apart, diet and activity restrictions are the only changes in Das’s life. ‘‘Life is as it was a month ago,’’ he beamed.
