New Delhi, Oct 22 — India's sole para-cyclist at the Asian Para Games, Arshad Shaik, will be undergoing surgery for the Comminuted, displaced subtrochanteric fracture of the femur he suffered in his above-knee amputated left limb when he fell during the competition at the ongoing Games.
Speaking to IANS, chief team physician, Dr. Ameya Kagali detailed the accident, Arshad's health condition and confirmed that the athlete will be undergoing surgery, which will need 10-14 days for him to recover.
Arshad, a 2024 Paralympian, slipped during the time trial at the Games in Shizuoka on Wednesday night and was taken to a hospital by the Japanese event medical team at Juntendo University Hospital in Shizuoka.
"When I received the call about his injury, I was at Mizohu Athletics stadium in Nagoya. Nagoya to Shizuoka is 300 Kms. Me and my team (Mr. Chaitanya, team India coordinator in Japan and Manish Rana, PCI official) left for the hospital where Arshad was admitted and reached at 11:30 PM local time on Wednesday," Ameya told IANS.
Ameya stated they did not waste any time for further action and activated the channels for further procedure.
"Through all this time, we were trying to activate all the channels of doctors that we know who are in Japan and also the embassy where we can make arrangements for any manpower that's required later on. But, again, the network was bad. We were working on language barriers," he added.
Arshad underwent scans, which confirmed that he was diagnosed with a comminuted, displaced subtrochanteric fracture of the femur, which is a severe break in the upper thigh bone and is located within 5 cm below the lesser trochanter.
The para-cyclist needed surgery for the same; however, the surgeons were not present at the Shizuoka hospital, so he was later shifted to Chutoen Sogo Izu General Hospital. "The surgery in that centre wasn't possible till Sunday, as the concerned surgeons were out for a conference.
"We couldn't wait till then, so we took a call to shift him to Chutoen Sogo Izu General Hospital, which is the midpoint between Nagoya and Shizuoka. This was recommended by the Medical Chair of the Asian Paralympics committee, Dr Shinya.
"He was taken in an ambulance, and we followed Arshad in our vehicle... I have had a meeting with the chief surgeons here at Chuteon Sogo Izu General Hospital, and we have come to a conclusion to go ahead with the surgery tomorrow at 1 PM local time," he added.
In tough times, the athletes need emotional support more than anything else, and the chief team physician highlighted just that. "I mean, you know, I think, it's just too unfortunate that it has happened. So we need to give moral support to them.
"I have known Arshad since the Paris Paralympics; I have also played with him as kids. So I was in touch with him when he was travelling, but the network was not very good," he highlighted.
The chief team physician also shared that as Arshad's event was in Shizuoka, he was the only athlete among the Indian contingent who was not in Nagoya. "But the cycling venue is in a totally different setting. And only the cycling venue is there.
"And Arshad was there with his identity. So there is a contingent of 168 athletes. 167 athletes are in Nagoya, and one athlete is in Shizuoka," he stated.
Arshad will now have to be in hospital for around 10-14 days after his surgery. "Amidst all this, Arshad is stable, all blood reports are normal, and he is fit for surgery... I think tomorrow after the surgery, he will be in this hospital for maybe 10-14 days for recovery," Ameya said.