610 kg Saudi forklifted to hospital at king's expense

A 20-year-old Saudi man, weighing 610 kg, was forklifted out of his apartment and flown here for treatment.

On orders from Saudi ruler King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz, Khalid Mohsen Shaeri, suffering from extreme obesity, was forklifted from the second floor of an apartment building in Jazan, capital of Saudi Arabia's Jizan province, and flown here Monday for treatment, local media reported Tuesday.

Accompanied by a special medical team, the patient was taken from Riyadh air force base to the King Fahd Medical City (KFMC), where he was received by Abdulaziz Al-Humaidhi, head of the transfer process, and Mahmoud Yamani, executive director general of KFMC.

Following orders from King Abdullah Sunday, the Saudi health ministry formed the special medical team and secured special beds and shifting equipment to execute the transfer.

According to Arab News, Shaeri is likely to be operated on by the same medical team that operated on a 250-kg man, who also suffered from extreme obesity.

Health ministry sources were quoted by the media as saying that Shaeri's obesity is one of the rarest kinds.

According to Ayed Al-Qahtani, consultant for laparoscopic surgery and obesity in KFMC, such patients should be operated on urgently to avoid complications later.