Victim of severe burns gets a new lease of life at VPS Lakeshore Hospital

Sumesh with the team at the Department of Plastic Surgery at VPS Lakeshore Hospital, Kochi including Sister Shiny, Nursing Head Celine Mathew, Dr. Paul George, Dr. Akshay Omprakash and Dr. Abhijith Wakure.

Sanitizers are here to stay as long as the covid pandemic lingers across the world developing new variants. But careless use of alcohol-based sanitizers may invite big fires and severe burns as it happened in the case of M S Sumesh (22), a native of Venginissery, 10 kms from Thrissur.

A painter by profession, Sumesh used to clean his hands with sanitizer after he finishes his job every day. But on February 25, 2021, he did not know parts of his body were also smeared with sanitizer while he cleaned his hands. Immediately after cleaning, he got into an auto-rickshaw and lit a jazz stick which caused the sudden and unexpected catch of fire. The fire severely burnt more than 40% of his body when he was rushed to a nearby hospital for first aid.

Later, he was taken to four other hospitals in Thrissur and Ernakulam but right treatment could not be offered at these places due to lack of facilities to treat major burns. Following this, Sumesh was taken to VPS Lakeshore Hospital in Kochi and under the treatment of Dr. Paul George and Dr. Abhijith Wakure in the Department of Plastic Surgery there, Sumesh slowly began to recover.

On the same night that he was admitted, his burnt and unburned skin were thoroughly decontaminated in a procedure with the help of anaesthesia. Then, within 24 hours, he underwent skin grafting surgery when deeply burnt skin was removed and thin layers of skin from thighs were transplanted on that parts while regular painless dressings ensured protection from infection.

In a week’s time, the patient was able to walk and exercise. By the end of two weeks, he was healed and was sent home as prompt and effective treatment ensured quick healing without any deformities. Commenting on the burns, Dr. Paul George warned all should take utmost care while using alcohol-based sanitizers as it is highly inflammable.