Why choose China? Ruijin Wu Liqun's team was invited to Mongolia to perform the first frozen balloon ablation surgery
This is the Third Central Hospital of Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia, located over 2200 kilometers from Shanghai. On September 16th, the cardiology team of Ruijin Hospital affiliated with Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, under the leadership of Director Wu Liqun, carried out the first cardiac cryoballoon ablation surgery abroad, and the surgery was a complete success.
This is not only the first heart surgery performed by Wu Liqun's team abroad, but also the first heart surgery received by Mongolia from China.
Kuren is a pilot from Mongolia, 46 years old. He was diagnosed with persistent atrial fibrillation a year ago and sought treatment at the Mongolian National Third Hospital, but both attempts at atrial fibrillation conversion failed. For a professional pilot, this is a fatal blow, which means he will not be able to reach the blue sky again. Therefore, Cullen holds great hope for the expert team from Shanghai, China.
On September 16th, while lying on the operating table, Kuren was accompanied by a thigh vein puncture and a catheter was inserted into the blood vessel. After precise mapping in the heart, Wu Liqun's team quickly identified the lesion and first isolated the pulmonary vein, blocking the path of abnormal potential transmission to the heart. Although the heart rate did not return to the expected normal rhythm, Wu Liqun had extensive experience in this area and subsequently made matrix improvements to the patient's atrium. Cryoablation was performed at the base of the left and right atrial appendages, left atrial ridge, and left anterior wall, respectively. The heart rate returned to normal and the lesion was cleared. The entire surgery took 50 minutes, and Dr. Ling Tianyou and Dr. Zhang Ning also participated in the surgery.
Subsequently, with the assistance of Wu Liqun and the operation of doctors from the Third Central Hospital of Mongolia, the first batch of 6 patients with atrial fibrillation underwent cryoballoon ablation. Today, all patients, including Kuren, recovered and were discharged.
Why choose China? Why choose Ruijin? Mungun Ulzii Khurelbaatar, Director of the Cardiovascular Center at the Third Central Hospital of Mongolia, blurted out, "Because this is the influence of Director Wu Liqun!"
In 2013, Ruijin Hospital became the first tertiary hospital in Shanghai to have cryoablation equipment and technology. Wu Liqun and his team became the first to eat crabs. Over the past decade, Wu Liqun has led a team to accumulate rich experience in key issues, special cases, and imaging examinations in this field. Now, Wu Liqun has become the leader of this technology, and Ruijin Hospital has also developed a Chinese guideline and consensus for this technology. From then on, this latest global technology has a standardized operation "guideline".
The publication of the "Consensus of Chinese Experts on the Ablation of Atrial Fibrillation through Cryotherapy Balloon Catheters" was subsequently translated into English and published in the Asia Pacific Heart Rhythm Association, sparking discussions in the field of arrhythmia in various countries in the Asia Pacific region. It was also at that time that Director Mungun had the idea to introduce this new technology to his own country.
In fact, this cooperation has also undergone ups and downs, taking three years from conception to implementation. Although there are surgical instructors available in Europe, Japan, South Korea, and other countries, considering the significant influence of the Wu Liqun team at Ruijin Hospital, Director Mungun of the Third Central Hospital of Mongolia has been waiting until now to ensure the quality of the surgery.
After the surgery, Tumur Ochir Tsedev Ochir, the President of the Mongolian National Third Hospital, signed a cooperation agreement with the team led by Wu Liqun. He expressed his gratitude to the Shanghai Ruijin Medical Team in China for bringing advanced treatment technology. He said that in the future, in addition to ablation in the cardiology department, he looks forward to further strengthening cooperation between the two sides, such as carrying out cooperation in the surgical field of non-stop heartbeat.
In addition to this surgery, the Ruijin Cardiology team also conducted training activities locally. Wu Liqun said that teaching people to fish is not as good as teaching them to fish. "What matters is not what we can do, but what local doctors can do. We hope to leave advanced medical technology for Ulaanbaatar and improve the local medical level."
Academician Ning Guang, president of Ruijin Hospital, said that this year is the tenth anniversary of the proposal of China's joint construction of the "the Belt and Road" initiative. With cooperation with hospitals in countries and regions along the "the Belt and Road", Ruijin can provide medical services for local people. Ruijin still has a lot to do. I believe that in the future, with the deepening of exchanges between the two sides, the road of people to people cooperation will become wider and wider.
