HYDERABAD, Feb 9: A large number of cardiac patients from poor families face problems every day because the set-up for angiography testing at the main health facility in Hyderabad district, Liaquat University Hospital (LUH), has been locked up for about a year.

The angiography machine had been acquired at a cost of Rs50 million in 2006. Later another Rs50 million more was spent on building infrastructure for the machine used for conducting angiography and angioplasty procedures.

However, for the past year or so, the facility has been closed leaving hundreds of poor patients in the lurch. Here at the LUH, they could get an angiography test done for Rs3,500 but now if the patients choose to go to a private facility they have to spend between Rs18,000 and Rs20,000 for the same.

There are two private hospitals in Hyderabad, Isra University Hospital and Red Crescent Institute of Cardiology, providing facilities for angiography and angioplasty to the people.

Angiography is a test while angioplasty is form of treatment for blocked arteries.

During an angiography, a dye is injected in the coronary arteries to make blockages visible. In an angioplasty, blockages in the coronary artery are eased by dilating the blood vessels with balloons and then placing ‘stents’ (tiny tubes) in them so they stay dilated. The reason why angioplasties are expensive is because of the stunts used in them. Two kinds are used the process — metal and drug-eluting stents. The ones made of metal cost between Rs150,000 and Rs160,000 while the more expensive drug-eluting stents cost between Rs90,000 and 200,000 at government hospitals while the cost is almost double at private facilities.

Talking to Dawn, LUH cardiology department chief Associate Prof Dr Syed Fasih Ahmed Hashmi said that he had requested the medical superintendent of the Civil Hospital Hyderabad (LUH Hyderabad branch), Dr Khalid Qureshi, many times to get the machine fixed. He said that Dr Qureshi was trying his best to get the apparatus repaired.

Prof Hashmi conceded that patients had to suffer because of the faulty machine, adding that besides Hyderabad district a good number of patients also came here from other districts including Tando Mohammad Khan, Tando Allahyar, Tando Adam, Matiari and Jamshoro.

He said that the machine generated an adequate amount of revenue for the hospital since around 10 patients every day had angiographies done. He said that it had been bought in 2006 with a two-year warranty and worked fine during that period. However, afterwards the machine could not be maintained properly and had to be repaired twice at a cost of at least Rs80,000.

For proper maintenance of the angiography machine Prof Hashim suggested that the hospital management outsource it to someone on a year-long contract. LUH medical superintended Dr Khalid Qureshi was not available for comment but additional medical superintendent-general Dr Saleem Raza Memon told Dawn that a tender had been given to a company for the repair of the angiography machine and it would be repaired within 30 days with the help of funds provided by the Sindh government.