28-year-old Daryna Voitovych from Novovolynsk, who developed severe pneumonia after having flu, was saved by doctors at Lviv University Hospital. According to the woman, before that all medical facilities in western Ukraine that could have used ECMO had refused to take her.
At the end of March, Daryna came down with flu. Three days later, her condition deteriorated sharply: her cough worsened and her temperature rose, so she went to the local outpatient clinic in Novovolynsk. An X-ray showed progressing pneumonia, and the patient was urgently admitted to intensive care, where she spent 10 days without regaining consciousness.
Doctors in Novovolynsk were looking for a facility that would be able to use ECMO — a machine for artificial oxygenation of the blood, which was the only hope for the young mother. The team at Lviv University Hospital agreed to transfer the patient. Anaesthetist Yurii Mashika said that 80% of Daryna’s lungs were not functioning and there was a high probability that she would not survive the journey to Lviv.
After a complex transfer, the team of the First Intensive Care Unit at the University Hospital took over her treatment. A round-the-clock battle for the patient’s life began. Daryna’s body responded to the therapy, her condition gradually stabilised, and they managed to avoid the critical step of connecting her to ECMO, although one lung, according to the doctors, was no longer functioning.
Daryna recalls that she regained consciousness already in Lviv, where she was told how severe the course of her pneumonia had been. She celebrated her 28th birthday in intensive care, which she calls her second, because, as she says, she is alive thanks to the work of the medical staff. Her room was decorated with flowers from her parents and the nurses.
After almost two months in intensive care, Daryna’s condition improved to the point that she is now being prepared for transfer to the hospital at her place of residence and later home. Ahead of her lies a long rehabilitation, but the main thing is that she is breathing, smiling and able to return to her two-year-old daughter.