Jammu, Sep 02 (KNO): Government Medical College (GMC) Jammu has taken a significant step towards strengthening advanced respiratory care with the successful introduction of Endobronchial Ultrasound (EBUS) at its Chest Diseases Hospital, making it the first such facility established in the Jammu Division.
According to the details available with the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) the advanced minimally invasive procedure is expected to substantially enhance the diagnosis and staging of a range of thoracic diseases, particularly lung cancer, tuberculosis and unexplained enlargement of lymph nodes in the chest, while reducing the need for patients to travel outside the region for specialised investigations.
As part of the initial rollout, three patients successfully underwent EBUS procedures at Chest Diseases Hospital, Jammu. The procedures were conducted under the expert supervision of Dr Naveed Nazir Shah, Professor, Department of Respiratory Medicine, GMC Srinagar, with coordinated support from the Departments of Anaesthesia and Pathology at GMC Jammu.
The facility has been established under the leadership of Dr Rahul Gupta, Professor and Head, Department of Respiratory Medicine, GMC Jammu, with the guidance and support of Dr Ashutosh Gupta, Principal, GMC Jammu, and Dr Rakesh Sharma, Medical Superintendent, Chest Diseases Hospital, Jammu.
Dr Rahul Gupta acknowledged the contribution of the Departments of Anaesthesia and Pathology in operationalising the specialised service and thanked Dr Rajesh Mahajan, HOD, Department of Anaesthesia, and Dr Jyotsna Suri, HOD, Department of Pathology, for their cooperation.
EBUS is an advanced bronchoscopic technique that combines bronchoscopy with real-time ultrasound imaging. It allows doctors to visualise structures located around the airways and obtain targeted tissue samples from lymph nodes and lesions, particularly in the mediastinal and hilar regions of the chest.
The procedure has become an important tool in the evaluation and staging of suspected lung cancer. It also has significant applications in diagnosing tuberculosis, mediastinal lymphadenopathy and other pulmonary and mediastinal disorders.
Unlike conventional approaches that may require more invasive surgical procedures to obtain tissue from certain areas of the chest, EBUS allows clinicians to access and sample selected lesions and lymph nodes through the airways. This can help doctors arrive at a definitive diagnosis while reducing the need for more invasive interventions in appropriately selected patients.
The introduction of the facility is particularly significant for patients from Jammu Division who previously required referral to specialised centres outside the region for advanced bronchoscopic evaluation.
With EBUS now available at Chest Diseases Hospital, eligible patients can undergo sophisticated diagnostic assessment closer to home. This is expected to reduce travel-related difficulties and expenses for patients and attendants, while also helping doctors make quicker and more targeted treatment decisions.
The facility is especially important in the context of lung cancer, where accurate assessment of lymph nodes and disease spread is crucial for determining the stage of the disease and planning appropriate treatment.
For patients with suspected thoracic malignancies, tuberculosis or unexplained mediastinal and hilar lymphadenopathy, the availability of such a specialised diagnostic service within Jammu could prove particularly valuable.
The GMC Jammu administration has reiterated its commitment to upgrading specialised diagnostic and therapeutic services and expanding access to advanced healthcare technologies so that patients can receive increasingly sophisticated treatment and diagnostic care closer to home—(KNO)