Doctors aim to reduce Eman’s weight to 100kg, from 500kg

Abu Dhabi: The process may take as long as another year. But doctors in a hospital here said they aim to bring down the weight of Eman Abdul Atti — also known as the world's heaviest woman — to less than 100 kilograms.

Speaking at a press conference in the capital on Monday, they said the journey would be a challenge, but that the 36-year-old Egyptian had made remarkable progress since her arrival on May 4.

“Our goal is to give Abdul Atti the best quality of life that is possible, and we are working to help her reduce her body weight to half what it was when she initially arrived," Dr Yassin El Shahat, chief medical officer at Burjeel Hospital, told Gulf News.

Her acute health concerns, including the severe bedsores and urinary tract infection, have mostly been resolved, and in August, we will begin with liposuction and removal of excess skin,” Dr El Shahat added.

Although details about her weight when she arrived in Abu Dhabi were not revealed, Dr El Shahaat said on Monday that Abdul Atti has lost 65 kilograms during her two-and-a-half-month stay in the capital.

At the press conference, Abdul Atti made her first public appearance. Dressed in a vibrant red, she was brought in to the hall on an special wheelchair.

Abdul Atti waved at members of the press and the Egyptian Ambassador to the UAE, Wael Mohammad Gad.

Meanwhile, her younger sister, Shaima Selim, thanked the hospital and the Abu Dhabi Government and authorities for the treatment and care provided to her sister. Abdul Atti also appeared just as cheerful when Gulf News visited her in her room a while later.

Online plea

Abdul Atti’s bedridden plight first came to international attention when her family issued an online plea for help to Egyptian President Abdul Fattah Al Sissi.

Medical records showed that she had been born weighing 5.5 kilograms, and had become obese at an early age.

Following a stroke two years ago, Abdul Atti had lost the ability to move her upper and lower limbs, and had become confined to bed.

Bariatric surgery

In February 2017, Abdul Atti was finally flown to a Mumbai — based hospital, where she underwent bariatric surgery in March.

Hospital reports claimed the surgery had helped reduce her weight from 500 kilograms, but a subsequent dispute about her future treatment led Abdul Atti’s family to reach out to Burjeel Hospital.

In Abu Dhabi, doctors found that Abdul Atti suffers from a congenital leptin receptor deficiency.

Leptin, known as the satiety hormone, helps signal to the body that it is full. In the rare cases in which a patient is deficient in leptin receptors, the brain does not receive the signal that a person is satiated, and the patient therefore constantly feels hungry.

Eman Ahmed before the surgery.

“This condition caused her to keep eating, and become morbidly obese. But we are now working closely with Abdul Atti and her family to ensure this does not recur,” Dr El Shahat explained.

To promote weight loss, the team of medical practitioners working with Abdul Atti limits her diet to about 800 calories a day.

They also provide daily physiotherapy, and this has helped her regain the ability to move her arms, feet and even legs.

A speech therapist is helping Abdul Atti pronounce words and regain the ability to swallow efficiently, and a psychologist meets with her daily.

“Once we have been able to reduce Abdul Atti’s weight, the plan is to perform surgeries required to correct an aortic valve defect in the third stage of treatment. She also has tremendous stiffness in the joints and knees of her lower limbs, and these too might require surgical intervention,” said Dr Nehad Halawa, deputy medical director at the hospital and head of Abdul Atti’s treating team.

A day in the life of Eman

10am: Her day begins

11am: A healthy breakfast is served and Eman feeds herself

12pm: A series of therapy sessions begin, including an hour of physiotherapy that involves throwing around a ball, stretching an elastic band and performing basic activities with her hands. This is followed by an hour of speech therapy, in which Eman is taught to pronounce words and to swallow.

2pm: Eman spends some time relaxing by watching television, conversing with her younger sister or talking to her psychologist if she drops by

4pm: Lunch is served

5pm: More physiotherapy is offered for an hour or so, and Eman follows up on her morning’s progress

8pm: Dinner is served after Eman has had some more time to relax

11pm: Eman gets ready to retire for the night