Selangor Sultan to undergo open heart surgery
(The Star) – The Sultan of Selangor Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah is scheduled to undergo open heart surgery at the Stanford University Medical Centre in Palo Alto, California.
The surgery would involve either the repair of a heart valve repair or a replacement for “mitral regurgitation,” depending on what the medical team decides when they begin the procedure.
Selangor State Secretary Datuk Ramli Mahmud said the valve surgery would be done under general anesthesia and would last for about five to six hours.
Mitral valve regurgitation surgery is recommended when a person’s ejection fraction — a measurement of the heart’s efficiency — drops below 60% and/ or the left ventricle is larger than 40mm at rest.
The ejection fraction can be used to estimate the function of the left ventricle, which pumps blood to the rest of the body.
Ramli said Sultan Sharafuddin, 63, will undergo the operation on Saturday. It would be carried out by two eminent medical professionals, Professor Dr Alan Yeung and Professor Dr Craig Miller.
Whether the surgery would involve repair or replacement would be the medical team’s call and would depend on the type of damage to the mitral valve, Ramli said.
Repair is more successful if there is limited damage to certain areas of the mitral valve flaps or to the tough fibres that control movement of the mitral valve leaflets. But replacement is usually preferred for people who have a hard, calcified mitral valve ring or widespread damage to the valve and surrounding tissue.
On Wednesday, Sultan Sharafuddin left for California from Singapore accompanied by his younger brother Tengku Indera Setia Selangor Tengku Ahmad Shah, Sime Darby Medical Centre Subang Jaya specialist doctor Datuk Dr Anuar Masduki, Datuk Pengelola Bijaya Diraja Selangor Datuk Zakaria Abd Rahman and Tan Sri Datuk Seri Syed Mohd Yusof Tun Syed Nasir, a Member of the Selangor Royal Assembly.
Private Secretary to the Sultan Datuk Mohamad Munir Bani said Sultan Sharafuddin has called upon Selangorians not to worry about his medical condition but to put it in prayer.
Ramli asked all places of worships to hold special prayers for Sultan Sharafuddin for a speedy recovery during his three-week recuperation period at the Stanford University Medical Centre.
