Former cricketer Sourav Ganguly can run a marathon and fly a plane as his heart is as strong as it was when he was 20, said cardiac surgeon Devi Shetty after examining the Board of Control for Cricket in India president at a hospital in Kolkata on Tuesday.
Ganguly was rushed to the hospital on Saturday after he complained of chest pain while working out at a gym. He underwent angioplasty after three tiny blockages were detected in his coronary artery.
“This event will not affect his lifestyle or lifespan. He is going to lead a normal life like anybody else. Sourav can participate in a marathon, fly a plane, or even get back to cricket if he wants without this event being any setback as his heart has not suffered any damage. He can start working from home as soon as he reaches home,” said Shetty.
Ganguly is expected to be released from the hospital on Wednesday. He would be on oral medications and monitored on a daily basis at home. Doctors have advised him to undergo two more angioplasty for the other blockages after two to three weeks.
“He has the option of both medication and angioplasty for the other blockages. It would be a good idea to go for angioplasty. We have left it for him to decide. He can wait for two weeks and then take a call,” said Shetty.
He added Ganguly’s event has shaken the world raising a question as to how a 48-year-old athlete like him, who does not drink, smoke, or has any other vices, is a fit man, can have a heart attack.
“Irrespective of how strict you are with your lifestyle, irrespective of how athletic you are, you can still have a heart attack if you do not go a preventive heart check-up at regular intervals,” he said. He added this event could have been predicted years ago and been prevented had Ganguly undergone check-ups.
Shetty requested Ganguly to influence the country’s sports bodies to ensure sportspersons go for mandatory cardiac and body check-ups at least once in two years.
West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee, who met Ganguly at the hospital on Saturday, said she was surprised to know that he never underwent any preventive check-ups.
Top cardiologists from India and abroad were consulted for Ganguly’s treatment. “If Ganguly was in any first world country, he would not have got any better care than what he has received in Kolkata,” said Shetty.
