Lalu undergoes successful cardiac surgery

Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad underwent a 6-hour-long cardiac surgery at a private hospital here on Wednesday and his condition is stable now.

The 66-year-old former Bihar chief minister was operated at the Asian Heart Institute by a team of 20 doctors under the supervision of well-known cardiac surgeon, Ramakanta Panda, who had operated on the then prime minister Manmohan Singh five years ago.

“The surgery has gone very well. The surgery, that started at 10 am continued till about 4 pm, where we replaced his aortic valve that had narrowed. We also repaired his aorta that was dilated. We found a small 3 mm hole in his atrium which we closed during the surgery,” Panda, vice-chairman and managing director of the institute, said.

The former railway minister’s condition is stable at the moment but he has been kept on a breathing tube for now, he said.

“Lalu Prasad is under anaesthesia and has been kept on a breathing pipe. We are hoping that by tomorrow (Thursday) morning we will be able to remove his breathing pipe,” he said.

Two bottles of blood were used to perform the operation. Lalu will be kept in the cardiac surgical intensive care unit for the next three days. After that, he will take a week to recover, Panda said. He said the decision to perform the surgery was preceded by a series of medical tests and evaluation.

“There were no surprises during the surgical procedure. We had already informed his family that there were multiple issues in the heart and they were ready (for the operation).”

Meanwhile, RJD leaders, legislators and well-wishers held a special prayer at the party headquarters in Patna for Lalu’s speedy recovery. Prime Minister Narendra Modi wished Lalu a speedy recovery and said he prays for his good health.