45-day-old baby's vision saved by doctors in Pune, Amravati

Hindustan Times

27-06-2025

In an example of care and compassion, doctors and hospital staff from Amravati and Pune came together to save the eyesight of a 45-day-old baby girl from a remote tribal village in Temru village in Chikhaldara tehsil of Melghat. This was a more aggressive form of ROP. Usually, we have three to four days to operate, but in such cases, even a delay of one or two days can lead to blindness. The swift action by the Amravati team ensured that didn't happen, says doctor. (REPRESENTATIVE PHOTO)
Born on May 10 at the District Women's Hospital in Amravati, the baby weighed just 990 grams. She was admitted to the Special Newborn Care Unit (SNCU) for over a month. On June 12, doctors diagnosed her with Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP), a potentially blinding eye condition that affects premature babies. Left untreated, ROP can lead to irreversible vision loss.
Realizing the urgency—ROP in such cases requires surgical intervention within two to three days—the doctors at Amravati swung into action. But multiple challenges stood in their way.
The baby's parents were in deep financial distress. They spoke a tribal dialect that many couldn't understand and lacked the necessary documents to avail of government health schemes. Above all, they had no means to travel to Pune, where the required treatment was available.
Despite this, Dr Preeti Ingle, head of the SNCU in Amravati, contacted Dr Sucheta Kulkarni, medical director at PBMA's HV Desai Eye Hospital in Pune. Dr Kulkarni immediately agreed to perform the surgery free of cost, but the question remained—how would the baby reach Pune, nearly 600 km away?
Initially, the baby's father refused to travel, citing a complete lack of money—he couldn't even afford the journey back to his own village. Recognising the gravity of the situation, hospital staff began counselling him. Meanwhile, district official Prakash Khadke contacted senior health officers Dr Tilottama Wankhede in Melghat and Dr Aishwarya Wankhede of the Primary Health Centre in Katkumb. Together, they arranged ₹ 5,000 to fund the family's travel.
On June 12, the family was supposed to catch a train at 10:45 pm, but they missed it. Undeterred, hospital and district staff arranged fresh tickets for June 13 and personally accompanied the father and child to the station to ensure they boarded safely.
They reached Pune the next day, June 14, at 7 am. Waiting at the railway station was Vishnu Gaikwad, an optometrist from the retina department at HV Desai Eye Hospital. He received the duo and took them straight to the hospital. The baby underwent surgery the same day. Later that evening, Gaikwad escorted the father and child back to the station and saw them off on their return journey.
The baby was readmitted to the District Women's Hospital in Amravati for follow-up care. Doctors there confirmed her condition is stable and, most importantly, her eyesight has been saved.
'This was a more aggressive form of ROP. Usually, we have three to four days to operate, but in such cases, even a delay of one or two days can lead to blindness. The swift action by the Amravati team ensured that didn't happen,' said Dr Kulkarni.
She also underlined the importance of early screening in rural areas. 'We conduct regular ROP screening in Pune, Satara, and Alibaug, but such programmes need to be expanded to remote districts like Melghat,' she added.
From a tribal hamlet in the Melghat hills to a high-tech eye hospital in Pune, this journey was powered by urgency, empathy, and institutional coordination. For a 45-day-old baby girl, it was not just a medical intervention—it was a second chance to see the world.