Dear Dr. Deepraj,

I want to share with you my experience of laparoscopic surgery under you and your able two assistant doctors. As I said on the day of discharge, and I repeat, you folks are a great team.

I was not new to hernia surgery having got both sides operated by open surgery in 2003 (right hernia in Japan) and 2005 (left hernia in India). In both cases I was given a spinal anesthesia and had to stay in hospital for 3 nights post-surgery. Thus, when the right inguinal hernia recurred I just tried to postpone its treatment for almost 6 months. I was just delaying the inevitable. The bulge was becoming bigger day by day and finally my family (read wife) decided that we needed to act. Of course, I knew it would be an open surgery again with those dreadful spinal injections and just the thought of pain in getting up from the bed for as long as 2 weeks post-operation gave me sleepless nights. My sister-in-law (Dr. V. Herekar, MD Anesthesia) knew of my fears and introduced me to the world of “laparoscopic surgery” through you. I consider myself as well read and did know about this procedure but never thought it would work in my case especially since mine was a recurrent hernia. In addition, I did not know what the Japanese doctors had done to my right hernial gap and was worried about it too. I was certain it would not work in my case but decided to go ahead and meet you along with Dr. V. Herekar. I carried all my necessary reports (blood/ 2D echo/ x-ray) as are necessary for any surgery. All my fears were unfounded in our first meeting and within 30 minutes of my meeting you – to my amazement – we had penciled in the day, the date and the time for surgery!!! I must admit that GA vs. spinal anesthesia helped quicken the decision-making. I put all my faith in your hands and I can now say that laparoscopic surgery was the right decision for me. You did advise me to read all about the procedure before coming to hospital, but let me share a secret: as it is I am afraid of any cuts even if it is 1 mm and I would rather get it executed without worrying about how and where!!! That’s what you experts are for…….

Today, I am perfectly normal and I still “fondly” recount our first meeting as the turning point that led me to this “happy” state. Yes, I am very satisfied (many thanks to my sister-in law who introduced me to you) that I came to you and got the hernia repaired — just to put it in perspective — within 20 hours after I returned to my room after the surgery I had left the hospital and on 10th day post-surgery I was on a flight to Japan and back to normal life albeit – no heavy weight lifting for 3 months. You did tell me that operation was a bit complex due to the Japanese technique of fixing the hernia and I was told that due to laparoscopic surgery you could even check my left hernia at the same time so that I do not have to worry about it in coming months. This, obviously, would not have been possible in open surgery – unless of course I was cut on both sides!!!. I have not had any medicines except those given in the first 20 hours, that was a great miracle for me.

Finally, the biggest compliment that I received (which is all yours) – I had met my relatives just a day before the operation and did visit them on the 4th day after the surgery – everyone commented that it did not look like that I had been in the hospital for a hernia surgery just few days back. I think I may have planted more seeds of laparoscopic surgery in few more minds.

Thanks you once again and am glad that I met you.

Regards

Gurunath Nayak
Kobe, Japan

GERD crept in very slowly on me. At first the heartburn and heaviness was a nuisance, a discomfort, which, with a busy schedule, I tried to ignore. As it increased, it became very convenient to pop antacids into my mouth and forget the whole thing for a while. The real problem would hit me at night, when I just could not lie flat without experiencing severe pressure in the chest, nausea and the terrible sensation that food would regurgitate anytime. Since extra pillows didn’t really help, I ended up purchasing a wedge which lifted me waist upwards, and helped a little. Meanwhile I continued to ingest antacids at an alarming rate, till I finally saw a gastroenterologist and got a new set of medicines, namely proton pump inhibitors. I took these for about three years, without thinking of the side effects that some of them have. I had become dependent on these medicines, which brought some relief during the day. Nights were unpredictable. The proverbial last straws were the choking episodes which would come on suddenly in deep sleep, and shock me into bolting upright. Every episode caused my husband to panic and pound me on the back till the stomach contents went back in or came out, and opened the airway. Of course, every time I felt sure that I had already breathed my last, and no more breaths would come! Good advice of doctor relatives led me to Dr. Deepraj Bhandarkar at Hinduja Hospital, Mumbai. What gave me a lot of confidence was the fact that he actually listened to me, and asked questions about my symptoms before looking at endoscopy test results etc. Especially in today’s situation when only tests and more tests seem to clarify things, never mind what the patient goes through. I also realized after some internet research that the procedure I would have to go through, a Nissen fundoplication, is a tricky one. It’s success depends on the skill and precision with which it is done. Many people tried to discourage me from going through this surgery, but I felt I had to take this chance to improve the quality of my life, trust the surgeon completely, and leave years of severe discomfort behind me. Minimal invasive surgery has many benefits. Recovery is much faster and the patient is reasonably independent. However, in this particular surgery, a lot of work takes place within the system, and one cannot expect to suddenly rise and shine immediately after. The first 24 hours are difficult, but not terrible. After that, each day becomes better than the previous one. I had to strictly follow the discipline of eating only pureed, blenderized food for nearly six weeks. Initially I did not have any desire for food. I used to stare at the soup, pureed fruit/vegetable and custard that was served. I found it difficult to swallow—even a teaspoonful does not go down the esophagus very easily. I had to be patient with myself. After about 4 weeks I felt I was ready to eat soft, semi solid foods. It is important to be very cautious at this stage, and go very slowly with changing food textures. At the end of two months I was back to normal food. In fact, I travelled to the US before 2 months were done, and even managed to eat some portions of fairly awful airline food! Dr. Bhandarkar’s advice of eating small portions more frequently has been very helpful. Thanks to the doctor’s skill, my recovery was smooth and uneventful. There is some amount of tiredness for a few weeks, but that is normal and natural. Hinduja Hospital provides excellent service, a meticulously clean and hygienic environment, and has an extremely pleasant and efficient staff Today, after nearly three years, I feel fit and fine (I am 64), and am into a lot of productive work. I have not even touched an antacid. I do not take any medicines whatsoever and have no side effects to worry about. Thanks to Dr. Bhandarkar, GERD is history for me.

Mangala Deshmukh
USA

One Monday morning I woke up feeling out of sorts. As Mondays are busy days, I decided to pull myself together and get to work. I conducted a full OPD and went for my coffee break with friends. There I became conscious of a nagging pain in the upper abdomen and nausea. I skipped the coffee, came home and skipped lunch too. I drank about two spoonful of buttermilk, which I promptly threw up. The pain became worse until I could not even tolerate the pressure of my clothing. My doctor husband gave me some tablets and advised me to go to bed saying that the pain would disappear soon. At 4pm I told him to request a gastroenterologist colleague to come home and see me as the pain had become excruciating and was accompanied by 3-4 vomits. The likelihood of a perforated ulcer, pancreatitis or perhaps even a myocardial infarct raced through my mind. The gastroenterologist Dr Sunil Shah came home promptly, ordered a sonography and called in a laparoscopic surgeon – Dr Deepraj Bhandarkar. They admitted me to the hospital with a diagnosis of acute cholecystitis – an infection in my gallbladder. I was treated with antibiotics. Results of my tests showed that in addition to the infection in the gallbladder I had passed a stone in the bile duct. An ERCP (endoscopy) was done the next day and the stone from the bile duct was removed.

The day following the ERCP was the day of my surgery for removal of the gallbladder. The preparations were brief but meticulous. Dr Bhandarkar performed the laparoscopic cholecystectomy in about 30 – 40 minutes and removed the swollen gallbladder with lots of stones and some mud (sludge). I had had a prior abdominal operation for another condition many years ago. The postoperative pain and discomfort I experienced after the laparoscopic surgery were minimal as compared to the previous open operation. I was standing up within a few hours of my surgery and was able to pace the corridor outside my room the next morning. I was sent home on the third day and was allowed full activity. Some abdominal discomfort and bloating were present for about 3-4 days after coming home. After removal of the stitches around a week later there was nothing to remind me of my ordeal. I was delighted. Practically no scars, back home after only 5 days in the hospital (considering that I had a stone in my bile duct as well as an infected gallbladder) and resumption of work a week later! God forbid that anyone should have cholecystitis. But, if one does, then a laparoscopic cholecystectomy is the definitely the solution.

Dr. Sudha K. Shah
Mumbai

I was detected with gallstones in 2010 and being a doctor I knew that I would require a surgery as I was getting symptoms. The decision to get the surgery done was easy and I went to Dr Deepraj Bhandarkar at Hinduja Hospital. He told me that he would be doing a single incision laparoscopic cholecystectomy. I must confess that I did not know too much about this form of surgery, which was relatively new then. Frankly, I was not too concerned about the scars etc. However, it was only after the surgery that I realized the full potential of the single incision procedure. The only painkiller I required was a Paracetamol tablets for a couple of days. I did not have to take antibiotics after the first day in the hospital and neither did I require any stitch removal. The ease with which the whole procedure got over and my super-fast recovery left me wondering at the progress the medical science has made. My mind went back to the open cholecystectomy surgeries I had assisted as a medical student years ago. At that time the patients required a week long hospitalization, had a much slower recovery and were left with a large scar. With me it was a matter of three days and I was back to work in my clinic on day four. As a patient our biggest concern about any surgery is the postoperative pain and I found that single incision laparoscopic cholecystectomy is a truly minimal access surgery with minimal pain and discomfort.

Dr Gaurang Desai

I can’t forget the pain on the night of November 2, 2009 at around 2.30 in the night. The pain in my abdomen and back was immense and I was unable to move in any direction whatsoever. No medicine provided relief. I usually had stomach pain once every month (that too at the same time during the night) which continued for 3 hours. I kept thinking that it was a gas problem and never paid much attention to it. But the pain on the night of November 2, 2009 was so severe that I told myself that “IF” tomorrow comes, I will visit the doctor first thing and resolve this problem. The pain subsided after 3 hours (as always). I visited my family doctor the next day and he prescribed some medicines for gas problem. However, after examination he felt that my abdomen was a little tender and therefore asked me to get blood test and ultrasonography done before visiting him next. I got the tests done the next morning and visited him in the evening. After perusing my reports, he informed me that I have a gallstone problem and that cholecystectomy (removal of gall bladder) was required. He also informed me that it could be done by laparoscopy and therefore there was nothing to worry about. However, on the insistence of my parents, I sought a second opinion from a renowned doctor from a famous hospital. He also was of the opinion that cholecystectomy was necessary. By now I had accepted the fact that I will have to say bye to my gall bladder but what scared me the most was the surgery part. The doctor assured me 90% the surgery would be performed laparoscopically but 10% chances were that I would require open surgery. This was going to be my very first surgery of any kind and therefore I began reading everything I could get my hands on about the gall bladder and cholecystectomy. By the time I was done I was scared to death to have the surgery.

I was then referred to Dr. Deepraj Bhandarkar who is a renowned laparoscopic surgeon. I visited him, and for the first time I was informed of this magic called SILC (Single Incision Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy) or SILS (Single Incision Laparoscopic Surgery). Dr. Bhandarkar assured me 99% the surgery would be performed thru SILC and 1% chances were that he would require the regular three/four port laparoscopy to be conducted. I WAS RELIEVED. He suggested me to visit this very site i.e. www.singleincisionlapchole.com and get answers to my apprehensions (I guess he read all the questions that were written across my face) with respect to the surgery. I sure visited this site and absorbed knowledge of the procedure involved but I also surfed the Internet for other people’s experiences pre and post cholecystectomy which again put me in the depression mode. I was also a little scared to experiment the surgery through single incision when not many had even heard of it and I too, was hearing it for the first time.

Nevertheless, I trusted my doctor and had faith in his expertise. As scheduled, I got admitted to the hospital on the previous evening of the surgery. My surgery was scheduled on 1st December, 2009. I was advised to fast since the morning. I left my room around 3 pm, had my surgery, was observed in the recovery area for am hour so and was finally back in the room by 6.30 p.m. When I regained consciousness, I was on my bed in my hospital room. I actually walked around my room (without support from anybody) after about 4 hours of regaining consciousness. I was very very pleased to experience this because I had not even in my dreams thought that I would be able to walk around so soon after the surgery. I had no pain, no nausea and no vomiting. That’s when I realized that the doctor had done something as good as magic. Only my abdomen felt a little heavy which eventually felt normal the next morning. The next day I was put me on soft diet and by evening I had normal dinner. The following morning i.e.3rd December, 2009 I was discharged and was relieved to return home. I was asked to avoid lifting heavy weights for a few days. On 10th December, 2009 the day of my follow up visit, the doctor changed my dressing and I noticed just a small incision within my navel.

Today, 62 days after my surgery, when I am penning down my experience, the incision mark has disappeared and so has the fear regarding SILS. I have had no side effects from the surgery and am leading a normal life. In fact, no one even guesses that I have undergone a surgery recently. Therefore, for me SILS means “Surely Invented to Lessen Suffering”.

Kusum Kanaujia
Mumbai

Since last two years I was having high blood pressure and suffered from frequent panic attacks, shortness in breathing, severe headaches and night sweats. In spite of administering high dose of blood pressure medicines, my problems had no end. Recently I was diagnosed with a large paraganglioma in the left side of abdomen. The size of the tumor was 8.5 x 7 x 6 cm. I visited many hospitals for suitable treatment. Since size of tumor was pretty large, only open surgery was suggested everywhere. When I contacted Dr. Ameya Joshi of Nair Hospital, he advised me to contact Dr. Deepraj Bhandarkar at Hinduja Hospital for surgery.

I was worried about my operation and health as I was anxious about an open surgery and consequent complexities. Dr. Deepraj Bhandarkar assured me that he would try at his level best to operate with laparoscopic method. He and his assistant surgeon always encouraged me and made me feel elated. I was admitted in Hinduja Hospital on September 29, 2013 and operated on October 1, 2013 by Dr. Deepraj Bhandarkar. He operated and removed the tumor with laparoscopic method. After surgery I was shifted to I.C.U for 1 day. My post operation recovery was quick and comfortable. I did not feel much pain. I started walking from 3rd day of my operation and this was possible only because of laparoscopic treatment. On 4thOctober I was discharged from the hospital. I did not feel any pain and discomfort after discharge from the hospital. All medication was stopped. My Blood Pressure is normal without taking any medicine. The entire process of operation, treatment and recovery was smooth, quick and comfortable beyond expectation of my parents. I render my gratitude from the deepest core of my heart to Dr. Deepraj Bhandarkar and his entire team for the kind concern and best treatment given to me.

With warm regards,

Iram Naureen

It all happened in April 2008 when I was in grade 10 and our family had just shifted to Dubai. Till then I had a perfect health record and no major complaints. I suddenly started vomiting after every meal and this became a daily affair. I consulted several doctors in Dubai, who could not diagnose the problem even after doing endoscopy. In the process I lost about 15kg in weight and in June 2008 my concerned parents took me to Bangalore for my treatment. The doctors at Manipal Hospital diagnosed that this was a case of achalasia cardia. They did an endoscopic balloon dilatation and that made me comfortable. I started swallowing food as normal and returned to Dubai.

But a few years later in 2012 the problem of swallowing and intake started again and I was able to finish my meals only with great difficulty. We started consulting doctors in Dubai who said that I had to have a laparoscopic cardiomyotomy. My parents were worried about the surgery as there were not many doctors in Dubai who performed this form of surgery and they wanted me to be handled only by an experienced surgeon. After several enquiries and web search finally they found Dr Deepraj Bhandarkar in Mumbai as an expert for this surgery. We first met Dr Bhandarkar in September 2013 and fixed up the surgery for February 2014. In the mean time, I started experiencing more and more difficulty in intake of food and it was found out that my food pipe has become significantly dilated.

Finally I got admitted to Hinduja hospital in February 2014 and the doctor performed the surgery successfully. I was discharged from the Hospital after about 3 days and I was in Mumbai for about a week. After getting clearance from the doctor at follow up a week after the surgery we returned to Dubai. I was advised to take blenderized diet for 6 weeks and in April I started eating regular food. Now I feel much better, am able to eat normal food and am slowly putting in weight.

We all are extremely thankful to Dr Deepraj Bhandarkar and his team at Hinduja Hospital for giving me a new lease of life. I feel that for this disease it is best to consult an expert like Dr Bhandarkar in the initial stages itself and get it treated rather than letting it progress to an advanced stage.

Best regards

BS
Dubai

If I had to name one of the most dreadful thing I have heard or seen in my life then I would not hesitate a bit to name the “Achalasia cardia”.

It is not known as to when exactly I got the symptoms of achalasia going, but maybe somewhere in mid 2005. Initially, I overlooked it and then some colleagues suggested to see a doctor who prescribed me “acid suppressants” without even thinking otherwise. Trouble increased day by day and eventually I started losing weight. I was happy that I was losing weight without any efforts but much to my discomfort I started fearing foods, which I loved to eat. These included all the fibrous foods, nonvegetarian foods, all shakes, junks like pizzas, burgers, etc…and especially the carbonated drinks like coke. With regurgitation starting, I came across one wise doctor who identified the symptoms as dysphagia and asked me to undertake barium swallow and endoscopy. The reports confirmed “Achalasia cardia” with distended esophagus. Then for next few weeks I searched the internet extensively because none of the people I knew had even heard of anything similar to this. The doctor suggested me to take “pneumatic dilatation” by virtue of which my “LES” would be stretched. The dilatation only added to my woes because my regurgitations increased every time I had water, tea and anything to eat. Somehow the six months passed after which I took another dilatation. The second attempt could not give me any respite. In the meantime from December 2007 to August 2008 I had lost approximately 30kgs of weight. I could see the pain in the eyes of family members and my small child used to question as to why I frequently got up while having food and go to bathroom, why we did not you eat at the hotel, etc. ..Then I came across a yahoo group for “achalasians” and the guys there guided me and asked me to refrain from me from any other dilatation. I had the typical mindset, which I suppose all of us have, is to do anything but not to go to a surgeon for operation. I got myself transferred to Alibag near Mumbai so that I could get my treatment done with Dr Deepraj Bhandarkar for whom I had got couple of recommendations. I searched for his name on the net and came across a couple of articles about him. Some ex-achalasians, who stayed abroad, had told that not all surgeons are good when they operate on achalasia. I met him at the Hinduja Hospital and presented him my reports. While going through he was quite calm, composed, focussed and above all quite confident on the way he was going to handle the case. Somehow I also felt relaxed and hoped of getting over this nightmare of achalasia. He asked me to undergo manometry test to check the pressure of my LES. Finally we decided to fix the surgery in first week of January 2009 because I wasn’t ready to take any chances in year 2008.

I got admitted to the Hinduja Hospital a day before my surgery and perhaps these guys are the best professionally the best from the time the patient reaches them. Dr. Bhandarkar operated me and I suppose that took him approximately 2 – 3 hrs or so. The first sip of water I took after the surgery was quite fearful because still the psychosis of regurgitation had not gone out of my mind. But GOD was kind enough to me this time and I could feel the water reaching my stomach without any “stoppage”. The recovery was uneventful and I got discharged 3 days after the surgery. I have given up my bad habit of lying down after meals and now spend minimum of 2 hours by staying upright after eating anything.

I would suggest to all those who have similar symptoms to consult a quality doctor and if they really want to get rid of this thing please go to a surgeon who specializes in specialized treatments pertaining to disorders like achalasia. Lastly, I wont hesitate a moment in recommending Dr. Deepraj Bhandarkar and I take the opportunity to thank him again for helping me to be free from achalasia.

Sanjiv Rodi