Bilkent City Hospital performs rare surgery on six-month-old infant

A six-month-old infant, Osman Alp Ordu, has survived a rare medical procedure and drug treatment at Ankara Bilkent City Hospital in Turkey. The infant was diagnosed with pulmonary hypertension, characterized by high pressure in the lung vessels, which led to right-sided heart failure.

After being transferred from Konya to Ankara via ambulance helicopter due to critical health conditions, the infant underwent surgery to place a bridge vessel between the left pulmonary artery and the aorta. According to Pediatric Cardiology Specialist Prof. Dr. İbrahim Ece, this is only the third time such a treatment has been applied to a patient in this age group worldwide.

Prof. Dr. Ece emphasized the importance of early diagnosis for pulmonary hypertension, noting that while the disease can be genetic, the exact cause is not always identifiable and can be fatal.