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Woman gets faulty treatment for rare abdominal syndrome

According to the doctors, MALS usually affects the young female population and there is one reported case every few years.

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After being wrongly diagnosed for gastric issues for months on end, Pune-based 25-year-old Padmaja Shivane was operated for a rare Median Arcuate Ligament Syndrome (MALS) in February, a rare abdominal pain syndrome which affects one in every 1,000 people.

Shivane, who experienced excruciating stomach ache since December had tried to treat it in Pune with painkillers and antacids. It was only three months later that she was diagnosed with MALS at Fortis Hospital in Mulund, Mumbai.

According to the doctors, MALS usually affects the young female population and there is one reported case every few years.

Speaking about the faulty treatment that Shivane underwent for a few months, she said,"It took me too much time to realise that I had such a rare and serious condition, which all along was being treated with medication for gastric issues. I consulted several doctors who couldn't diagnose the actual problem for weeks. I am glad, that I was finally diagnosed with MALS and was able to get the required treatment before my condition worsened."

MALS causes a ligament to compress an abdominal blood vessel, preventing the blood to flow freely into the stomach and the upper intestine. In Shivane's case, she experienced severe pain after she consumed food, and it was this condition that she was treated for over three months in Pune's different hospitals.

Dr Rakesh Rai, Hepatobiliary & Transplant Surgeon at Fortis Hospital, said, "Cases like these are extremely rare and there is little or no awareness about this condition. The key to treating it is timely surgical intervention. Not all tummy aches are acidity or gastric troubles. It is always ideal to see a doctor when you have a persistent stomach ache. In Shivane's case, we were fortunate that she sought medical attention at a specialist unit in time."

Dr Rai further added ways to identify the problem, "Any patient with severe upper abdominal pain, mostly after eating, which continues for months and common investigations like endoscopy cannot explain the cause of pain is a strong indicator of MALS. Since it is a congenital one cannot take any precautions to avoid it."

Shivane added, "I am able to live a healthy life today. I am now able to get back to my daily routine and do not face any problems at home or at work."

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