Days after reports regarding former prime minister Imran Khan’s health that sent shockwaves through his party circles, a senior doctor has confirmed that he underwent a medical examination of his right eye, with doctors confirming that pressure in the blood vessels affected his vision.
The examination took place at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) in Islamabad.
The hospital’s executive director, Dr Rana Imran Sikandar, said a team of senior doctors assessed Imran’s condition before discharging him. He explained that increased pressure in the vessels of the right eye had temporarily impacted his eyesight.
Sharing details of the treatment, Dr Sikandar said that Imran underwent a specialised medical procedure after doctors diagnosed a condition affecting the vision in his right eye.
He said Imran had earlier complained of reduced eyesight in his right eye, prompting a detailed medical assessment. According to Dr Sikandar, a senior doctor first examined him at Adiala Jail before recommending further evaluation at the hospital.
A series of diagnostic tests were carried out, including a slit-lamp examination, fundoscopy, measurement of internal eye pressure and an optical coherence tomography (OCT) scan of the retina.
Doctors concluded that the former premier was suffering from central retinal vein occlusion, a condition caused by pressure affecting blood flow in the retina. The medical team advised immediate treatment under specialist supervision, he added.
On the medical advice, he was brought to the Pims hospital late at night between Saturday and Sunday for the recommended procedure, according to Dr Sikandar.
He further said he was fully briefed about his condition and the proposed treatment, and written consent was obtained from him beforehand.
Dr Sikandar said the procedure was performed in a sterile operating theatre under close monitoring and was completed successfully in about 20 minutes. Throughout the treatment, the patient’s vital signs remained stable, he informed.
After the operation, Imran was discharged with medical instructions, follow-up advice and the necessary documentation for continued care.
PTI stages sit-in at Supreme Court
The medical update comes after the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) staged a sit-in outside the Supreme Court yesterday, demanding a meeting with the incarcerated party founder and access to information about his health.
PTI leaders had sought permission for his family and personal doctors to review his condition after it emerged that he had been taken to the hospital from Adiala Jail for medical checks.
Following the sit-in and a meeting with the Chief Justice of Pakistan, PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja said that Imran’s family will receive his medical report.
Speaking to reporters, he said that the party was assured after an intense day of negotiations that it would receive a medical report for the party’s founder.
He, however, said that the achievement was “not entirely satisfactory”, adding that the party fought a “moral case” outside the court.
Raja explained that the founder and his sisters would receive medical reports, with assurances that personal doctors could access him at Adiala jail after the report was issued.
