Surgery in Bongolo

As Jamie said, the surgical diversity here is a bit daunting. Over the past 48 hours, I've been involved with an extended thyroid lobectomy, two skin grafts for non-healing wounds, an inguinal hernia repair, a ruptured ectopic pregnancy, and a Caesarian section. (For all my surgical friends: don't worry-I do have pictures-I just didn't think our non-medical friends would enjoy them too much on the blog)

The woman who had the C-section is named Agnes. She suffers from Von Recklinghausen Disease, which is a debilitating disorder that causes lumps to form all over the body from nerve tissue as well as bone deformities. Her arms, legs, and pelvis are all deformed from the disease. Her first child died during a prolonged labor because her pelvis is too deformed to allow passage of the child. Please pray for her as she heals and begins to try to take care of her new baby. Please also pray that her child will not develop the disease, as the chances medically are 50%.

We also saw a young woman of about 19 today who came in for prolonged bleeding after an induced abortion. She has stopped bleeding and is feeling better now. Dr. Thompson says that around 80% of the women here have had an induced abortion at some point in their lives. It used to commonly be performed using a manioc (cassava) stem, which often resulted in septic shock. Many now use Cytotec (misoprostol), an abortifacient that here is available over-the-counter in most pharmacies. These ladies have lower risk for sepsis, but still high risks of bleeding, infertility, and depression. He also said that around 60% of the women of childbearing age become infertile-usually either as the result of abortion or from sexually transmitted disease. No matter what your view on what the solution is, it is clear there is a huge problem. Please pray that the beauty and miracle of life in its purest form will be realized here and that women will protect their children and their bodies.