The Abia State Specialist Hospital and Diagnostic Centre, Umuahia, has recorded a major milestone in specialist healthcare delivery following the successful performance of its first major brain surgery.

The development was disclosed on Tuesday by the Commissioner for Information, Prince Okey Kanu, while briefing journalists on the outcome of the State Executive Council meeting held on Monday and chaired by Governor Alex Otti.

Kanu described the successful neurosurgical procedure as part of the ongoing transformation of Abia’s health sector, which he attributed to sustained investment by the Governor Otti administration.

Providing details of the operation, the Commissioner for Health, Professor Enoch Uche, said the patient was a 19-year-old young man who was brought to the hospital in a deep coma.

According to Uche, the patient initially had a Glasgow Coma Scale score of six out of 15, which later deteriorated to five.

He explained that the patient was in a critical condition due to massive bleeding inside the brain, which was putting pressure on the brainstem and required urgent surgical intervention.

The commissioner said transferring the patient to another healthcare facility could have placed his life at further risk.

He said the availability of the necessary facilities and specialist brain surgeons employed by the state made it possible for the operation to be carried out at the Abia State Specialist Hospital.

“Because we now have facilities to undertake brain surgery, and then we have brain surgeons in the State employed by His Excellency, that surgery was done,” Uche said.

He disclosed that more than 100 millilitres of blood clot was removed from the patient’s brain during the operation.

Uche added that the patient had subsequently begun moving his limbs and was continuing to receive treatment and monitoring in the Intensive Care Unit.