Free Pulmonary Valve Implants Done Under Universal Health Insurance

Egypt’s Healthcare Authority has carried out two pulmonary valve implantation procedures using interventional cardiac catheterisation for the first time under the Universal Health Insurance System at Al Nasr Specialized Hospital in Port Said. Both procedures were provided free of charge.

The minimally invasive intervention offers an alternative to repeated open-heart surgeries for patients with complex congenital heart defects. Outside comprehensive coverage, the cost of the procedure typically exceeds EGP 1 million per case. According to the authority, the first patient, aged 18, had undergone seven previous medical interventions since birth before receiving the pulmonary valve implantation.

He was discharged in stable condition 24 hours after the procedure. The second patient, aged 16, had complex congenital heart defects and a history of four open-heart surgeries and two cardiac catheterisation procedures. He was discharged in stable condition 72 hours after the operation.

The procedures were performed by what the authority described as the only accredited medical team in Africa authorised to conduct pulmonary valve implantation via catheterisation.

The team was led by Dr Abdel-Rahman El-Afifi, head of paediatric cardiology and interventional catheterisation for congenital defects at Al Nasr Specialized Hospital and the Magdi Yacoub Hospitals, alongside a multidisciplinary team of consultants, anaesthesiologists, nurses and technicians.