Munni Begum/Guwahati

Dr. Yasin Ali, Head of Paediatrics Department, Health City Hospital, Khanapara, Guwahati, performed bronchoscopy on a 1.5-month-old child from Nagaland, and the child continues to be in good health.

This pioneering treatment was possible because Dr Yasin Ali happens to be the only professional trained in the use of this new technology in the entire north-east region. Bronchoscopy involves the insertion of a small tube into the air spaces (lungs) of the patient so that doctors can examine or treat the conditions inside.

However, in the case of neonates and young children, the procedure is challenging since it can fatally reduce the flow of oxygen in their bodies.

Dr Yasin Ali, who has been practising for 14 years, used the newly developed technology that uses the finest possible tube (2mm and 3mm) to do bronchoscopy on a child.

Dr. Yasin Ali and his staff

This technology is being used for the treatment of newborns born with an 800-gram weight to young children. The pipe is usually 15-16 mm in size for adult patients.

"There was no treatment available for this complicated respiratory disease in Assam. Many children were sent abroad for surgical treatment. I often saw this and thought of doing something. I completed the basic course on 'Bronchoscopy' conducted by the Indian Academy of Paediatrics at Memorial Research Institute. Additionally, this year, I completed my advanced course in Chennai., Many pediatricians and pulmonologists from all over the country applied for the course, and only 20 candidates were selected. I won the gold medal in this course." Dr Yasin said after he treated the Naga child.

"Earlier, children were treated surgically. But now with this technology, we can treat up to 95 percent of children without surgery. Now we can identify and treat various disorders from the nose to the lungs without causing pain.

"This technology will also allow Dr. Yasin to perform complex treatments such as laser therapy, cryo, small incisions, tracheostomies, tumor examination, and removal of food entering the trachea.”

Dr. Yasin Ali (Second from left) receiving the gold medal in bronchoscopy course of the Indian Academy of Pediatrics at Fortis Memorial Research Institute, Gurgaon

Dr. Yasin Ali did his schooling at KKBB Golaghat. He received his MBBS degree from Shillong Medical College, and later he completed his Diploma in Child Health from Guwahati Medical College and an MD (Pediatrics) degree from MAMC, New Delhi.

He is the recipient of the 2017 Dr. Satya Gupta Award in the Research Paper category on Social Pediatrics at the annual function of IAP Delhi. He joined Health City Hospital in 2018 and heads its Pediatrics Department.

He bagged the gold medal in the Advanced Interventional Bronchoscopy Course conducted in Fortis Memorial Research Institute, Gurgaon, under the aegis of the Indian Academy of Pediatrics. He is the first Doctor to achieve this feat in the entire Northeast till now.

In 2022, Dr. Yasin Ali identified three rare diseases in a child for the first time in the history of medical science. After 12 months of continuous research, Dr. Ali diagnosed Horse Shoe Kidney, Primary Ciliary Dykinesia, and Nonaan's Syndrome in a child.

This is a medical record of sorts.

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This innovative bronchoscopy treatment technology that Yasin Ali successfully used will revolutionise the treatment of lung diseases in Assam. As this treatment was previously only available in Delhi, Chennai, or other advanced medical centres, it will now be readily available in Assam.