Beed, Oct 29 Four persons suffered significant deterioration in vision after contracting a rare bacterial infection called ‘Serratia marcescens’ following cataract surgeries at Swami Ramanand Teerth Rural Government Medical College and Hospital (SRTRGMC) in Ambajogai in Maharashtra’s Beed district, officials said on Thursday.
Hospital authorities said intensive clinical efforts are underway to restore their eyesight, including summoning a team of senior ophthalmologists from Government Medical College in Latur for consultation.
“The surgeries were performed on October 17, when a batch of 22 patients underwent cataract extraction at the facility. A day later, four patients, comprising three women and one man, developed acute complications in their operated eyes. They were rushed to the specialised Ganapati Netralaya in Jalna for advanced tertiary care on October 19,” an official said.
“They remained under intensive treatment there until their discharge on October 25. The remaining 18 patients operated on the same day reported no complications and are in stable condition. The outbreak is an unprecedented and rare clinical anomaly,” he added.
Microbiological culture of ocular fluid samples isolated Serratia marcescens, an extremely uncommon pathogen in post-operative endophthalmitis, said Dr Dnyanoba Darade, Head of Ophthalmology Department at SRTRGMC.
“Immediate microbiological surveillance was initiated to trace the source of infection. Nasal swabs and samples taken from all operating surgeons, nurses, and medical students present in the operation theatre (OT) on October 17 tested negative for the bacteria, and environmental swabs from the OT premises were also sterile,” Darade said.
A comprehensive, multi-angle scientific probe is underway to determine the exact route of transmission, he added.
The affected individuals are senior citizens with underlying comorbidities, including diabetes and hypertension, which can complicate immune responses.
“Our department routinely conducts 350 to 400 cataract surgeries every month with high success rates, and an incident of this nature has never occurred before,” Darade said.
Although the patients are currently experiencing impaired vision, aggressive therapeutic protocols recommended by senior vitreoretinal specialists are being administered to salvage and restore their sight, he said.
(PTI News)
