Lucknow — In what doctors are calling nothing short of a miracle, neurosurgeons at King George’s Medical University (KGMU), Lucknow, successfully removed an iron grill that had pierced through the head and shoulder of a three-year-old boy after a horrific fall.
The child, Kartik from Gomtinagar, fell nearly 20 feet on the night of August 16. A heavy iron railing impaled his head and shoulder, leaving his family in shock. Rushed first to a private hospital, the family was quoted a staggering ₹15 lakh for surgery — far beyond their means. Desperate, they carried Kartik — still pierced by the iron grill — to KGMU’s Trauma Center at around 11:45 p.m.
A Battle Against Time and Odds
The situation was dire. Removing the grill posed extraordinary risks:
-
First challenge: Cutting the iron grill lodged dangerously close to the brain without causing further damage.
-
Second challenge: Performing CT scans was nearly impossible with the grill still embedded.
-
Third challenge: Positioning the child on the operation table was itself a near-impossible task.
Despite these hurdles, a specialized neurosurgery team led by Dr. B.K. Ojha (Head of Neurosurgery) and including Dr. Ankur Bajaj, Dr. Saurabh Raina, Dr. Jason, and Dr. Basu, decided to attempt the high-risk surgery. Support came from the anesthesia and trauma surgery departments, making it a combined effort of precision and courage.
Three-and-a-Half Hours of Marathon Surgery
Over three and a half tense hours, surgeons carefully worked to remove the grill. With delicate precision, they succeeded in extracting the iron rod from Kartik’s head and shoulder — a feat that doctors themselves called a “battle between life and death.”
The child is now stable and recovering in the Pediatric ICU on a ventilator.
Family’s Tears of Gratitude
Overwhelmed parents described the doctors as “the embodiment of God” and hailed KGMU as a “temple that gave our child a new life.”
KGMU Vice-Chancellor, Padma Shri Dr. Sonia Nityanand, praised the team’s extraordinary efforts, calling the surgery “a shining example of KGMU’s medical excellence and the power of modern science.”
“This was not just a surgery but a miracle of medicine that saved an innocent life,” she said.
