Complex Surgery Restores Young Man’s Hope

Thanks to a team of multidisciplinary specialists not available anywhere else in the region, Abdullah underwent a complex procedure which saved his life.

Since 2018, Abdullah had been hospitalized several times with blood clots, which had spread to his lungs. This made breathing extremely difficult and caused him to cough up blood. He was diagnosed with pulmonary hypertension, a condition that causes abnormally high pressure in the pulmonary artery, the main blood vessel which takes blood from the heart into the lungs. The condition was putting significant pressure on Abdullah’s heart, which can lead to heart failure – a life threatening situation if left untreated.

One day, Abdullah began vomiting blood uncontrollably and was rushed to hospital. Doctors warned that he needed an extremely long, complex and risky surgery to remove the clots and scarring from inside his artery.

Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi is the only hospital in the region, and one of only a handful of centers in the world, with the expertise needed to carry out such a challenging procedure.

The team of multidisciplinary specialists worked together during the lengthy procedure – which involved stopping Abdullah’s heart, lungs and blood flow completely – to reopen the blocked blood vessels.

Immediately after the major surgery, Abdullah’s breathing was vastly improved, and he began to recover well. Today, he feels like he has been given a new life and has renewed all his ambitions and hopes for the future.