Sudanese girl lived for 8 years with 8-cm iron screw near her heart

Girl undergoes successful open-heart surgery Olivia Olarte

Khaleej Times

17 June 2011 ABU DHABI — A 21-year-old Sudanese girl underwent a successful but dangerous surgery to remove an iron screw imbedded near her heart.

Dr Mohammed Yemen, medical director of Mafraq Hospital, who led the two-hour operation, said the foreign body was discovered by chance when she underwent an x-ray for her residence visa in Abu Dhabi.

According to her medical history, at 13, the girl fell and broke her right collar bone, and an eight-cm iron screw was placed to hold the fracture.Examination at Mafraq Hospital showed that the screw had moved during the years and was imbedded in a very dangerous and sensitive place of her left chest.

A CT scan dye showed that the screw was lodged behind the superior vena cava and next to the main artery. In order to avoid the risk of injuring the main artery, the medical team decided on an open-heart surgery.

“The surgery was a success. It went without any complication,” said Dr Yemen

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