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In hospital for month and coming out Covid -ve to tell the story
Gaurav Chatterjee and Neelam Khandale, through hubby Jeetendra, tell TOI about the extended stay for treatment
Nagpur: Techie Gaurav Chatterjee, 30, and Neelam Khandale, who was eight months pregnant, had no hopes. Infected with Covid, both landed at the Alexis Hospital in the city with low oxygen and high infection levels.
There were moments when doctors too thought that the battle was lost for the two. After 28 days of hospitalization, Gaurav was discharged on Wednesday while Neelam returned home a week ago after a 45-day state in the hospital. She is due to deliver by the end of this month or July first week.
TOI spoke with Gaurav at the hospital and also Neelam’s husband Jeetendra, who is an engineer working at Mumbai, over phone. Amid the despair, the patients and their kin kept hopes high, they said. Doctors also attribute their recovery to team’s efforts and patients’ willpower.
Initially, Neelam was being treated at home but had to visit hospital every day. “After three days, her oxygen level dipped to 70. On April 17, she was admitted and finally discharged on May 25,” said Jeetendra.
There were days when 5 patients were dying every day, “but I constantly boosted her courage”. “I secured special permission to be with her in the ward. The anaesthesia during tracheostomy (inserting tube in windpipe to help breath) could have harmed the baby, but the child survived,” said Jeetendra.
“The doctors often counselled her about the threat to the baby. One day, the woman next to her passed away and that broke Neelam’s courage too. Along with the doctors, I tried to keep her spirits high and she slowly recovered,” said Jeetendra.
At home, Neelam is maintaining an oxygen level of 96 as the family awaits the second child.
“I had come to Nagpur and was set to take a job abroad when I got infected. Even my father was hospitalized due to Covid and a number of other acquaintances too were diagnosed positive. After some days I stated feeling breathless. Even walking to the wash room left me panting and I was at the ICU after getting in the emergency ward here first,” said Gaurav.
“I could see people and hear voices. I knew there was something wrong with me but deep inside I felt everything would be okay soon. I just wanted dada (elder brother to be with me). I still remember the day when I saw him standing in a PPE kit, and that was the turning point,” said Gaurav, now readying to go home.
Brother Saurav came to Nagpur from Canada after changing five flights. “Gaurav’s HRCT level was more than 20, which made it a rather critical case. Even with 100% oxygen he was not being able to maintain the normal oxygen level. At at one point, the family had planned to air lift him to Mumbai,” said Dr Nitin Shinde who was treating him. The patient’s willpower also helped.
“We had to take certain tough decisions,. The question was about immunity and saving a life. During Gaurav’s time, medicines like tociluzumab were not available anywhere. We took a call and injected him with a dose of infliximab and it worked,” said Dr Manoj Pethe.
Infliximab is an injection given to patients of rheumatoid arthritis to reduce inflammation. “This worked for Gaurav and the inflammation in his lungs caused due to Covid reduced,” said Dr Pethe.
Dr Rashmi Shinde, the gynaecologist treating Neelam, said, “Her requirement of oxygen support only increased by the day and finally she was put on the ventilator. At that time, we felt it would be tough to save her. But the oxygen support was aggressively continued and slowly she began to respond.”
“The baby was also constantly monitored during the days and is now doing well,” said Dr Shinde.
Nagpur: Techie Gaurav Chatterjee, 30, and Neelam Khandale, who was eight months pregnant, had no hopes. Infected with Covid, both landed at the Alexis Hospital in the city with low oxygen and high infection levels.
There were moments when doctors too thought that the battle was lost for the two. After 28 days of hospitalization, Gaurav was discharged on Wednesday while Neelam returned home a week ago after a 45-day state in the hospital. She is due to deliver by the end of this month or July first week.
TOI spoke with Gaurav at the hospital and also Neelam’s husband Jeetendra, who is an engineer working at Mumbai, over phone. Amid the despair, the patients and their kin kept hopes high, they said. Doctors also attribute their recovery to team’s efforts and patients’ willpower.
Initially, Neelam was being treated at home but had to visit hospital every day. “After three days, her oxygen level dipped to 70. On April 17, she was admitted and finally discharged on May 25,” said Jeetendra.
There were days when 5 patients were dying every day, “but I constantly boosted her courage”. “I secured special permission to be with her in the ward. The anaesthesia during tracheostomy (inserting tube in windpipe to help breath) could have harmed the baby, but the child survived,” said Jeetendra.
“The doctors often counselled her about the threat to the baby. One day, the woman next to her passed away and that broke Neelam’s courage too. Along with the doctors, I tried to keep her spirits high and she slowly recovered,” said Jeetendra.
At home, Neelam is maintaining an oxygen level of 96 as the family awaits the second child.
“I had come to Nagpur and was set to take a job abroad when I got infected. Even my father was hospitalized due to Covid and a number of other acquaintances too were diagnosed positive. After some days I stated feeling breathless. Even walking to the wash room left me panting and I was at the ICU after getting in the emergency ward here first,” said Gaurav.
“I could see people and hear voices. I knew there was something wrong with me but deep inside I felt everything would be okay soon. I just wanted dada (elder brother to be with me). I still remember the day when I saw him standing in a PPE kit, and that was the turning point,” said Gaurav, now readying to go home.
Brother Saurav came to Nagpur from Canada after changing five flights. “Gaurav’s HRCT level was more than 20, which made it a rather critical case. Even with 100% oxygen he was not being able to maintain the normal oxygen level. At at one point, the family had planned to air lift him to Mumbai,” said Dr Nitin Shinde who was treating him. The patient’s willpower also helped.
“We had to take certain tough decisions,. The question was about immunity and saving a life. During Gaurav’s time, medicines like tociluzumab were not available anywhere. We took a call and injected him with a dose of infliximab and it worked,” said Dr Manoj Pethe.
Infliximab is an injection given to patients of rheumatoid arthritis to reduce inflammation. “This worked for Gaurav and the inflammation in his lungs caused due to Covid reduced,” said Dr Pethe.
Dr Rashmi Shinde, the gynaecologist treating Neelam, said, “Her requirement of oxygen support only increased by the day and finally she was put on the ventilator. At that time, we felt it would be tough to save her. But the oxygen support was aggressively continued and slowly she began to respond.”
“The baby was also constantly monitored during the days and is now doing well,” said Dr Shinde.
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