A 46-year-old resident of Navi Mumbai, Mr. Rajesh, successfully underwent a heart transplant surgery at Apollo Hospitals, Navi Mumbai. He received the heart from a 52-year-old woman, a deceased donor. The patient, with severe heart failure, had been on the heart transplant waiting list for six months and was admitted around eight times with intractable heart failure during this period. While his life was saved each time, a heart transplant was the only hope and with no organ available in Mumbai, he decided to go to Chennai for a heart transplant. The transplant surgery was successfully completed in four hours, with the patient off the ventilator within 24 hours. Dr Sanjeev Jadhav, Heart & Lung Transplant Surgeon, at Apollo Hospitals, Navi Mumbai said, “When the patient, Mr. Rajesh came to Apollo Hospitals, he had been suffering from a dilated heart (dilated cardiomyopathy) functioning at only 20% ejection fraction since the last five to six years. That meant his heart was pumping only one-fifth of the blood out of the left ventricle (the main pumping chamber) every time it beat. Anything less than 35% poses a high risk of developing a dangerous arrhythmia and going into heart failure. An automated cardioverter defibrillator pacemaker had been implanted to give an electrical stimulus to the heart and bring it back to normal rhythm in case of any change. He also had a history of severe cardiac failure with lung infection and fluid collection in the lung lining (pleural effusion) last year and was suspected to have contracted COVID-19 infection.” When the patient came to Dr. Jadhav at Apollo Hospitals, Navi Mumbai, he was treated for his heart failure and after evaluation, he was put on a heart transplant waiting list. Dr. Jadhav added, “However, he did not get a matching heart for six months, during which time he was admitted multiple times with intractable heart failure. We saved him each time, but with time running out, the patient decided to go to Chennai for the transplant. Even in Chennai, there was no matching organ available for four weeks and just when he was losing hope, a donor heart became available in Mumbai. He was informed and he flew back immediately for the transplant surgery. The organ matched and we performed transplant surgery that took around four hours. It was a complete success. He was taken off the ventilator and was able to breathe on his own within 24 hours.” Mr. Rajesh, the patient was grateful for the organ and the donor’s family. On his new lease on life, he said, “I had almost lost hope before coming to Apollo Hospitals. The doctors and the team here gave me hope and saved my life multiple times when I went into heart failure. The positive attitude of Dr Sanjeev Jadhav and the entire team as they stood like a pillar for me, kept me going through my treatment and the long wait for the donor organ. I am thankful to the hospital, the doctors and the donor’s family for giving me a new lease of life. I look forward to returning to my family and normal life soon.” Mr. Santosh Marathe, COO & Unit Head, Apollo Hospitals, Navi Mumbai, said, “The case highlights how organ donation can save lives and at Apollo Hospitals, our endeavour is to promote and spread awareness about the need for organ donation. Through organ donation, one can serve society even after death. Apollo Hospitals, Navi Mumbai is recognised as one of the most advanced transplant centres in Western India with successful liver, kidney, heart and bone marrow transplants recorded. The unit has also handled multiple international transplant cases and undertaken liver transplants at other affiliated hospitals in Maharashtra. The Apollo Hospitals’ organ transplant team is known for some of the finest transplant surgeons in the country with years of experience who are backed by specialists and a support staff that includes Transplant Coordinators, Social Workers, Psychiatrists and Anaesthesiologists.”

Apollo Hospitals Group has notched up yet another milestone with the successful completion of four back-to-back MitraClip procedures in one single day. The MitraClip implants were carried out on four patients suffering from severe heart failure, surpassing Japan where MitraClip procedures were performed on three patients in a single day. The four back-to-back MitraClip procedures were performed at Apollo Hospitals, Chennai by Dr Sai Satish, Senior Interventional Cardiologist. The minimally invasive method used in MitraClip therapy allows repair of a leaking mitral valve without open heart surgery, and is a lifesaver for patients at high surgical risk. All four patients, the oldest of whom was 87 years old, went home walking within 3 days and are currently doing well. Read more about four back-to-back MitraClip procedures performed at Apollo Hospitals, Chennai

Apollo Cancer Centres proudly launched the “The Power to fight Breast Cancer is in Your Hands” campaign, which illustrates the importance of regular self-breast examination and screening on this International Women’s Day. Ms Radikaa Sarathkumar presided over the campaign by launching the digital platform for breast self-examination along with Ms Preetha Reddy, Vice Chairperson, Apollo Hospitals Group. Read more about the Breast Cancer awareness campaign

Apollo Hospitals Group partners with Anatomiz3D Medtech Pvt Ltd. for design and printing of complex implants. Apollo Hospitals and Anatomiz3D would take the lead in a pioneering initiative to establish Hospital 3D-printing labs in India for 3D printed implants that would enable doctors to visualize and print implants for complicated cases. The first of these would be launched at Apollo Health City, Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad. Dr. Prathap C Reddy, Founder and Chairman, Apollo Hospitals Group said, “We are proud to once again be the pioneers in bringing the latest in medical technology to benefit our patients. It would not be wrong to say that with the Hospital 3D-printing labs, the future of healthcare is here! Personalisation of healthcare is the new mantra and advances in genomics and precision medicine are driving personalised prevention and treatment. From specialised medicines for targeted therapies to customised implants and prosthetics, 3D-printing technology is transforming the medical environment providing a fast, accurate and economical solution to take medical care to the next level. As healthcare evolves, 3D-printing will play an important part of this future transformation.” The Hospital 3D-printing labs would provide medical 3D printing services for better healthcare, through the creation of anatomical models for pre-surgical planning and education, patient-specific cutting and drilling guides, and customized implants and implant moulds. Ms. Sangita Reddy, Joint Managing Director, Apollo Hospitals Group said, “3D-printing is today used in a wide range of healthcare settings and is helping to save and improve lives in ways never imagined until now. 3D-printing has many applications in healthcare and the in-house 3D-printing labs at the hospitals will enable better patient care and treatment planning. Advances in 3D printing technology today produces customized, lighter, stronger, safer and higher performing products with reduced lead times and lower costs. This gives doctors with a better understanding of their patients and improves patient comfort level with products that are designed especially for their anatomy. Patient-specific design of implantable devices and surgical tools will help optimize surgical processes and costs. In areas such as spinal surgery, customised 3D-printing will add value to personalized medicine, enhancing pre-operative planning, leading to shorter operation times and helping to reduce risk for the patient. 3D-printing will also help improve the skills of the new generation of surgeons with a better understanding of the disease involved. This is just the beginning and as the technology continues to develop, we will see the unlocking of the full potential of 3D-printing in healthcare.” Ms Firoza Kothari, Co-founder and CTO Anatomiz3D said, “Ever since 2015, Anatomiz3D has believed in the potential of 3D Printing in personalizing healthcare and has seen itself follow a path to translate its vision to a reality. Our strategic collaboration with Apollo Hospitals, a progressive organization and one of the pioneers in adopting new technologies early on that are beneficial to its patients, is a strong step towards such large scale translation. Over the years, we have had the opportunity to work with multiple clinicians associated with Apollo Hospitals, and it is a moment of pleasure and pride for us to bring this technology to them directly in their facility, to use in their practice as well as explore in research and development. Together, Apollo Hospitals and Anatomiz3D aim to make customized medical devices easily accessible to patients, for an enhanced quality of life” Anatomiz3D uses technology that has been proven in over 1000 cases. A multi-disciplinary team consisting of Biomedical Engineers, Mechanical Engineers, AM Engineers, 3D Designers will work with Apollo Hospitals medical and surgical talent in the Hospital 3D-printing labs. The lab will provide Anatomical Models that are life-size replicas of a patient’s anatomy, accurately reconstructed from their CT/MRI scans into 3D models, which can be created in multiple materials, colours, opacities and hardness to provide advanced 3D visualization for pre-surgical planning and patient communication; Implants and Molds that are custom designed to perfectly match the defect region in a patient, would ensure an ideal aesthetic and functional fit. 3D printed in biocompatible material; and, Surgical guides and tools fit on a predetermined area of a patient’s bone and guides a surgical saw or drill in a pre-planned direction, ensuring a precise surgical outcome.

A 5-month-old infant became the youngest child to undergo a successful heart transplant at Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals on 13th January 2021. At birth, the baby was diagnosed with poor heart function (dilated cardiomyopathy) due to multiple holes in the left chamber of the heart. Consequently, the blood that was supposed to reach the heart was getting drained out, hampering its smooth functioning. The baby was brought to the Emergency with no pulse and BP. He was resuscitated successfully after 4 hours of continuous efforts by the Emergency team and then his condition was stabilized in the NICU. Since the baby required a heart transplant, he was registered with NOTTO on the very day of his admission and the child received a heart from a 20-month-old cadaver donor. A team of experts led by Dr Bhaba Nand Das, Senior Consultant, Pediatric Cardiology (Surgical) and his team comprising of Dr Rajesh Sharma, Senior Consultant, Pediatric Cardiology and Cardio Thoracic Surgery, Dr Mukesh Goel, Senior Consultant, Cardio Thoracic Surgery, Dr Deepa Sarkar & Dr Vikas Anesthesiologists, Dr Manisha Chakraborty, Cardiologist, Dr Muthu Jothi, Senior Consultant, Pediatric Cardiology and Dr Reetesh Gupta, Paediatric Cardiac Intensivist, conducted this transplant procedure and the process of procuring the organ. Dr Bhaba Nand Das, Senior Consultant, Cardio Thoracic Surgery, Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals, said, “A human body requires a heart transplant as a definitive treatment in case of an end stage heart failure, where medical therapies and external supports are not able to control and revive heart function. Generally, all transplants are done with a matching blood group donor, including heart transplant. But in case of children where it is very difficult to get organs in the first place, getting a matching blood group donor is extremely rare. Therefore, for children we do accept mismatched blood group transplants.” “Like in the case of this child, his blood group was O+ and the donor child was AB+. While most of the times no complication arises, but in case of any, there are certain modalities and therapies like plasma exchange that we do, if such a situation arises.” Dr Mukesh Goel, Senior Consultant, Cardio Thoracic Surgery, Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals said, “All the organs harvested from the donor should be transplanted into the recipient within a specific time duration. For the heart, it is 4 hours, because once the organ is taken out of a body, it stops getting oxygen, blood supply and other nutrients and consequently the cells of the organ start dying. Therefore, in case of heart transplant, if it is transplanted into another person after 4 hours, the organ may not function properly. Post that depending on the patient’s condition many of them may require temporary ECMO support till the organ regains full function on its own.” Dr Muthu Jothi, Senior Consultant, Pediatric Cardiothoracic Surgery, Interventional Cardiology at Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals, said, “When the child was admitted with us, his heart was unable to function unless on ventilator support. While we knew only a heart transplant could save the child, getting a heart for a child as young as him was very rare and difficult. Nevertheless, on the very first day we had registered him with NOTTO and on 8th January we were notified that parents of a brain dead child (20-month-old) were willing to donate his heart, kidney and liver. A special Green Corridor was created through which the team could bring the organ back to the hospital within 17 minutes and exactly within 2 hours 5 minutes the heart transplant was done successfully.” The child is under observation and he will be put on anti-rejection therapy to ensure that the heart functions normally.

In the past few months, COVID 19 has been associated with many severe health complications that it poses in the long run. Doctors at Indraprastha Apollo Hospital, came across one such rare case, which might be the first reported case of post-covid encephalitis in India. 55-year-old Mr. Mitlesh Labru from Jammu was diagnosed with Acute haemorrhagic LeukoEncephalitis: a neurological disorder: Encephalitis means inflammation in the brain. Mr. Labru had contracted COVID 19 with mild symptoms, post which he went into home quarantine. However, his condition deteriorated rapidly leading to shortness of breath. He was urgently shifted to a local hospital in Jammu. Diagnosis revealed that owing to COVID 19 the patient had contracted Pneumonia of the Lungs and was hence put on ventilator. The doctors were not sure about the line of treatment considering the complexity and risk factors associated with patient’s health as he suffered from multiple co-morbidities such as Diabetes and Hypertension. Thus, the local doctors had to call in a team of experts from Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals, New Delhi. Within 24 Hours, an expert team of doctors comprising of Dr Mukesh Goel (Senior Consultant, Cardio Thoracic Surgeon), Dr Devjeevan (Senior Interventionist), Dr Priyadarshini Pal (Head of Emergency, Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals) along with a perfusionist (a healthcare professional who operates the ECMO machine) and a nursing assistant was formed. This team flew to Jammu, stabilised his oxygen ventilation and got the patient to Delhi via an air ambulance for further investigations and immediate treatment, considering the fact that any further delay in treatment would have led to loss of life for the patient. He was admitted to Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals on December 1st 2020, under the supervision of Dr Rajesh Chawla, Senior Consultant, Pulmonology & Respiratory Disease. Supervising the case, Dr Rajesh Chawla, Senior Consultant, Pulmonology & Respiratory Disease, said, “When the team reached Jammu the patient was in a critical condition and unfit for travelling even on ECMO support, considering the fact that his lungs had been severely affected due to Pneumonia and were not functioning properly. We first tried to stabilize his health as only post that he would be fit to be shifted via an air ambulance to Delhi. At Apollo he was admitted to the COVID ICU ward and we monitored his condition closely. While the patient manifested signs of recovery from COVID pneumonia within 2 days and was removed from the ventilator, we noticed that he had slipped into deep coma due to an underlying condition in his brain.” Dr Vinit Suri, Senior Consultant, Neurosciences, Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals, said, “Usually when patients recovering from COVID pneumonia are removed from sedation and muscle relaxants (after being on a ventilator) they come back to consciousness within hours, but that was not the case with Mr Labru. His MRI revealed that there were multiple swellings in the brain along with over 400 micro blood clots (haemorrhagic spots). This condition has been identified as COVID Encephalitis (Acute haemorrhagic LeukoEncephalitis). Fortunately, we were able to diagnose this condition on time and with immune therapy and steroids we were able to gradually revive the patient within 7 days to a complete state of consciousness and alertness. While he still has slight weakness in his limbs, his post treatment MRI shows more than 50% recovery and the patient has been discharged on 26th December.” Encephalitis causes inflammation in the brain and is manifested by epileptic seizures, fever and headache. Association of COVID 19 with Encephalitis is rare and only few cases have been reported worldwide.

Mr. Mahboob Rahman, a 51-year-old from Murshidabad, was diagnosed with advanced pancreatic adenocarcinoma. In 2019, he was suffering from jaundice for which he underwent stenting to relieve the jaundice. He then underwent two more stenting surgeries at a hospital in Midnapore, West Bengal. He was later brought to Apollo Gleneagles Hospitals, Kolkata and was diagnosed with a mass at the pancreatic head. The team of doctors at Apollo Gleneagles Hospitals, Kolkata successfully performed a complex surgery, which involved replacing the portal vein damaged by the pancreatic cancer with artificial graft tube (PTFE graft), a first for Eastern India. Read more about the Whipple procedure performed to treat pancreatic cancer with portal vein invasion.

Doctors at Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals, New Delhi, successfully performed a bone marrow transplant on a 17-month-old Filipino baby, for what can be called as world’s first ever bone marrow transplant for a novel mutation in the blood (NF-E2). As a first of its kind case to have ever been reported in the world (first published in British Journal of Hematology), the doctors at Dubai were not fully equipped to conduct a Bone Marrow Transplant for such a condition. Hence, they referred him to India to Dr Gaurav Kharya, Clinical Lead, Centre for Bone Marrow Transplant and Cellular Therapy & Senior Consultant, Pediatric Hematology, Oncology and Immunology, Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals, New Delhi. Dr Atish Bakane, Associate Consultant, Centre for Pediatric Hematology Oncology, BMT and Cellular Therapies at Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals said, “This was a challenging case for us because we had never dealt with this novel mutation. Different blood mutations react to chemotherapy drugs in a different manner, hence we closely monitored this procedure and fortunately we were able to save the baby.” Read more about how the rare novel mutation in blood (NF-E2) was treated.

Apollo Hospitals Group has joined the UAE’s Waterfalls Initiative for Continuous Education from UAE. This unique initiative aims to train health and medical professionals around the world and empower them through building and strengthening their capabilities. The Apollo Hospitals Group will support the Waterfall Initiative’s educational program that includes specialized lectures, seminars and workshops on vital topics in medicine, pharmacology, nutrition, public health, nursing, dentistry, and hospital management. 52 senior doctors from various reputed hospitals in India are joining the Waterfalls Initiative. FICCI and the Apollo Hospitals Group are the Indian partners for this initiative that aims to reach and empower 1 million health professionals worldwide. Speaking at the Virtual Launch, Ms. Sangita Reddy, Joint Managing Director, Apollo Hospitals Group said, “We are honoured to join this global initiative that aims to deliver continuous education and support front-liners across all medical and humanitarian fields. We also thank His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of UAE and Ruler of Dubai and His Highness Lieutenant General Sheikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior of the UAE for his timely decision in launching the initiative, which will benefit one million health professionals We are sure that Apollo Hospitals with its experienced medical doctors and healthcare workers will be able to add tremendous value to the specialized webinars, lectures and workshops delivered across the world through an internet based digital e-learning platform. Apollo Hospitals was one of the pioneers to use web broadcasts to deliver CME programs with eminent medical experts from around the world coming together to discuss latest developments in various specialties. Today, advances in e-learning technology enable innovative, interactive delivery of the latest medical developments, that can be conveniently accessed across platforms and geographies. We are happy that Apollo Hospitals will be supporting this unique effort to upskill and create value for healthcare professionals, who form a nation’s assets.” “The project is the largest of its kind and will offer virtual medical training across 14 medical sectors. Within the Waterfall platform, those affiliated with the initiative will obtain a training certificate and approved hours from the international scientific and academic bodies participating in the initiative, and they can benefit from it in the scope of their work or in their research, or in completing their scientific studies through continuous distance education without having to leave their jobs or leaving their workplace or bearing any financial burdens, through the initiative link.” H.E. Dr. Ahmed Al Banna, UAE Ambassador to India Waterfalls Continuous Education is an initiative launched by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of UAE and Ruler of Dubai. The initiative is being conducted under the supervision of His Highness Lt. General Sheikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior and the Department of Behavioral Rewards at the Ministry of Possibilities in collaboration with INDEX Holding. Those registered with Waterfalls Registration will receive a training certificate and credit hours accredited by the scientific and academic entities participating in the initiative. The Waterfalls Initiative for Continuous Education from UAE to the World will have over 230 speakers and over 77000 participants. The virtual Launch Event for India’s Participation in the Waterfalls Initiative for Continuous Education from UAE to the World was hosted by Eng. Anas Al Madani, Vice Chairman and Group CEO – INDEX Holding and had Mr. Uday Shankar, President, FICCI; Ms. Sangita Reddy, Immediate Past President, FICCI, Joint Managing Director, Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Limited; H.E. Dr. Ahmed Al Banna, The UAE Ambassador to India; Dr. Alok Roy, Chairperson, FICCI Health Services Committee & Chairman, Medica Group of Hospitals speaking on the occasion. Also present were H.E. Pavan Kapoor, Ambassador of India to UAE; Dr. Aman Puri, Consul General of India in Dubai; Colonel Abdulrahman Ali Al Mansouri, Director of the Executive, Office in the Department of Behavioural Rewards at the Ministry of Possibilities; and, Dr. Abdul Salam Al Madani, Executive Chairman of Waterfalls Initiative for Continuous Education from UAE to the World, Chairman of INDEX Holding. The Waterfalls Initiative for Continuous Education from UAE to the World is a global project by the Government of UAE’s Ministry of Possibilities and INDEX Holding and in cooperation with Aqdar World Summit to support front-liners across all medical and humanitarian fields through live and on-demand instruction. The details of the initiative, information on webinars and speakers are available on https://waterfalls.ae/. The initiative will be supported by Dr Rakesh Jalali, Medical Director – Apollo Proton Cancer Centre (APCC), Professor of Radiation Oncology, Dr Sandeep Guleria – Senior Consultant, Kidney Transplantation, Dr Sai Satish – Senior Consultant Interventional Cardiology, Dr T Sunder – Senior Consultant Heart and Transplant Surgery, Dr Subash Wangnoo – Senior Consultant Endocrinology, Dr Arvind Garg – Head, Department of Paediatrics from the Apollo Hospitals Group.

CSIR-Centre for Cellular & Molecular Biology (CCMB) and Apollo Hospitals have tied up for joint manufacturing and commercialization of an innovative dry swab test, Direct Amplification rapid RT-PCR (DArRT-PCR) – for SARS-CoV-2 detection. The test has been developed by CSIR-CCMB and the collaboration with Apollo Hospitals will focus on scaling up manufacturing and commercialization of the tests jointly. The rapid, safe and cost-effective DArRT-PCR tests will be available nationally through the Apollo Hospitals network. The DArRT-PCR test allows for rapid, safer and more cost-effective SARS-COV-2 testing. The sample collection centres can send dry nasal or oropharyngeal swabs to testing centres with no need for the imported and expensive Viral Transport Medium. The biological sample can be directly isolated from the patient swabs, and testing using a one-step protocol. The current gold-standard method, on the contrary, requires many expensive reagents and steps that add to the expertise, money and time required for the tests. The DArRT-PCR test reduces the time and human effort by 40-50% in the current setting of testing. Dr Rakesh Mishra, Director, CSIR-CCMB applauded this collaboration and said, “As people are getting back to their normal lives and businesses, it is important for us to ramp up our testing for the coronavirus. The virus will be here for some time and those who test more frequently will be able to contain the impact of COVID-19 better. Cheaper, rapid and easy to use tests as these are the need of the hour. With Apollo and its vast network of hospitals and health services, we are positive about impacting many lives towards better health.” Dr Sangita Reddy, Joint Managing Director, Apollo Hospitals Group said, “We are glad to collaborate with CSIR-CCMB in this path-breaking initiative of a more rapid, easy to use and accurate testing option and work to make it available nationwide. The Apollo Hospitals Group has always been at the forefront of cutting-edge medical technology and a pioneer in implementing the latest advances for the benefit of patients. Co-creating and commercialising an Indian solution in line with our Hon’ble Prime Minister’s vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat is an important landmark for Apollo Hospitals. As India continues to unlock, easy availability of cost-effective, reliable testing for COVID-19 is the key to getting back to normal. Widespread testing will enable quick identification, immediate isolation and early treatment to prevent spread. With nearly half of all COVID-19 infections transmitted by people who are asymptomatic, these easy and quick tests will go a long way in facilitating the identification of infected individuals who may be asymptomatic or presymptomatic. These tests will give a boost to the efforts to mitigate the effect of COVID-19 and will play a major role in controlling the pandemic.”

Apollo Specialty Hospitals, Vanagaram has successfully performed three multi-disciplinary complicated procedures on a 35-year-old patient, who had an Ischemic stroke. Mr. Ramkumar, from Chennai was brought to Apollo Specialty Hospitals, Vanagaram with a sudden inability to use his left arm and leg and with symptoms of facial paralysis. He was brought into the hospital in a drowsy condition and was only able to respond to doctor’s queries feebly. He had a vision loss in his left eye and also his eye was deviated to the right side. Read more about how doctors at Apollo Specialty Hospitals, Vanagaram treated Ischemic stroke patient.

The team of Cardiologists at Apollo Hospitals, Hyderabad led by Dr. A. Sreenivas Kumar, Director, Cardiology & Clinical Research has performed a critical cardiac procedure – Trans Aortic Valve Replacement (TAVR) on an 83-year-old COVID survivor male patient from West Godavari District. The patient was suffering from Hypertension, Mild Coronary Artery Disease, COPD, severe Degenerative Aortic Valve Disease, severe Aortic Stenosis and Mild Aortic Regurgitation. Despite recovering from COVID he developed lung fibrosis, leading to worsening of breathlessness, palpitations and extreme fatigue. He was rushed to the Hospital considering his deteriorating condition due to pre-existing severe Aortic valve disease coupled with the Post-COVID difficulties. Patient was evaluated with HR CT Chest for COVID manifestations, stabilised and once COVID PCR became negative he was evaluated by CT Angio with TAVR Protocol. A detailed clinical and Echocardiogram evaluation that followed strongly indicated TAVR as the treatment option. His Coronary Angiogram revealed mild CAD which can be managed medically. After explaining the pros and cons regarding TAVR, patient was admitted on 25th November and TAVR procedure was done successfully. The post procedure hemodynamic revealed no gradient across Aortic valve and echo done showed good valve position with no AR. His Femoral puncture site was closed with Perclose – proglide systems, patient was ambulatory by night and was discharged the next day morning. This is the first patient in the twin Telugu states to undergo this procedure post COVID recovery, even in the Country no data was available on this being performed earlier. This performing of a TAVR procedure on an octogenarian COVID recovered patient is a milestone. It sends a strong message to patients with pre-existing cardiac disease and recovered from COVID, that there is no need to postpone seeking medical care for critical ailments. The expertise and facilities available at Apollo Hospitals, can help patients recover from serious ailments and lead a normal and active life, says Dr. A. Sreenivas Kumar. COVID survivors are developing myriad health problems, it could be simple ailments like fatigue, body aches, joint pains, lack of concentration to more severe and long-term health complications with one or other body organs being compromised. The problems could be lung fibrosis, severe lung scarring with lung losing its elasticity and ability to pump oxygen needing lung transplantation, Ischemic Heart Disease, strokes due to clot in the brain, kidney complications and more, as studies unravel newer insights about the disease. Most such patients were devoid of any of these health issues prior to COVID and some of them have already developed irreversible conditions, impacting them for lifetime. This phenomenon is across the age and gender groups and this patient too became a victim of Post- COVID health complications.