Ahmedabad: A 14-year-old Muslim girl from Bihar, who was initially told she had tuberculosis and would require spinal surgery, recovered with antibiotic treatment after doctors at Ahmedabad’s Government Spine Institute identified a different bacterial infection through a biopsy.
The case also became an occasion for a personal bond between the patient and her doctor when Ikra Sheikh tied a rakhi to spine surgeon and institute director Dr Piyush Mittal during a Raksha Bandhan programme.
Ikra, whose maternal uncle and aunt live in Ahmedabad, had developed severe back pain that did not improve with routine medication.
After her pain became unbearable, she underwent an examination elsewhere and was told, based on an MRI report, that she had TB and would need surgery.
Concerned about the diagnosis, her family brought her to the Government Spine Institute at Ahmedabad Civil Hospital for further evaluation.
Dr Mittal advised a biopsy to determine the cause of the condition accurately. The family initially refused the procedure after becoming worried about the possibility of a serious illness and asked that TB treatment be continued.
Dr Mittal subsequently explained the need for the biopsy and persuaded them to undergo the examination. The biopsy showed that Ikra did not have TB but had an infection caused by the bacterium Pseudomonas.
She was treated with appropriate antibiotics and began recovering without undergoing surgery or receiving TB medication.
Speaking about her experience, Ikra said: “The doctor saved me from going down the wrong path and from a major surgery. I thought I had TB, but Dr Mittal made the correct diagnosis and gave me a new life. On this special day of Raksha Bandhan, tying a rakhi to the doctor to thank him is my greatest joy. Dr Piyushbhai is not just a doctor for me, but like a brother and protector.”
The rakhi ceremony at the institute brought an emotional dimension to the doctor-patient relationship. Dr Mittal said the gesture represented a bond that extended beyond medical treatment.
“When a Muslim girl considers a Hindu doctor her brother and ties him a rakhi, it becomes a living example of social harmony. In the medical field, administering antibiotics without an accurate diagnosis carries the risk of superbugs and resistance, an issue that the government has also recently emphasised. Through the biopsy, we were able to identify the exact bacteria,” he said.
“But when Ikra tied me a rakhi today, I felt proud not as a doctor but as a brother. This incident shows that the relationship between a doctor and a patient is not limited to medicines, but is also about trust and humanity,” he added.
Dr Mittal also urged patients and families not to rely on assumptions or unnecessary medication when dealing with infections.
He said doctors should properly investigate the underlying cause of a bacterial infection and carry out appropriate laboratory tests on medical advice before deciding on treatment.
The case coincided with Raksha Bandhan and Eid-e-Milad, with the rakhi tying serving as a gesture of gratitude from the young patient towards the doctor who treated her.
(IANS)
