Sibel Dağ, a 29-year-old mother of two, living in Iskenderun, underwent a brain hemorrhage 5 months ago. A severe stenosis occurred in the windpipe of Dağ, who entered the intensive care and intubation process after the aneurysm hemorrhage. To eliminate the breathing problem that posed a life-threatening risk, a tracheostomy was performed on her in the hospital, where she stayed in the intensive care unit for 20 days. Explaining that she could not speak when she was discharged from the hospital the day before the earthquake, Sibel said, “My psychology was very bad. My children were saying something to me, but I could not answer. Even during the earthquake, I could not tell my children, ‘I'm here.' The hospital where I was discharged the day before collapsed during the earthquake, and many patients who stayed there were also trapped under the rubble. And that has affected me too much.” While she had no hope remained, after the surgery performed by Thoracic Surgery Specialist Prof. Dr. Sina Ercan and her team, she regained both her health and her voice, which she said she had forgotten.

Saying that he was almost to lose his wife due to stenosis in her windpipe, Anıl Dağ shared the difficult times they had gone through: “It had started to seem a joke to me: first, my wife had a brain hemorrhage, then she had a narrowed windpipe, and then the earthquake happened. Despite all these events we have been through, I call myself “the happiest person in the world” as I finally see my wife this way.

"Reaching Yeditepe University Hospitals  Thoracic Surgery  Department Head Prof. Dr. Sina Ercan after the research he has made for the health problem experienced by his wife, Anıl Dağ underlined that they conducted all this process with Prof. Dr. Ercen, who talked to their intensive care unit doctors by phone, ensured the performance of tracheostomy, and therefore discharge of her wife from the hospital, without seeing them at all during this whole process.

"Seeking a Solution, Mr. Dağ Contacted Me by Phone and Said that He Wanted to Bring His Wife Here” 

Yeditepe University Hospitals Thoracic Surgery Department Head Prof. Dr. Sina Ercan, on the other hand, noted the following about the process that Sibel Dağ went through:"Reportedly, Mrs. Dağ was in a tough situation and could not breathe due to what she experienced after the aneurysm hemorrhage in her brain. She entered the intensive care and intubation process after the aneurysm hemorrhage. They could not intubate her even with a baby-sized intubation tube because he had very severe stenosis in his windpipe. This situation, of course, poses a huge vital risk. The fact that it happened immediately before the earthquake also made the event more complicated. Seeking a solution, her husband, Mr. Dağ, contacted me by phone and said that he wanted to bring his wife here. Transferring a patient in this condition involves very serious risks. That is why I met with the anesthesiologist there. By finding a suitable cannula from a convenient place, we ensured that a tracheostomy was performed on the patient there. Our goal was to assure the patient's breathing and to be able to continue the subsequent process without a life-threatening risk.”

"Even Though I Had Been Discharged From the Intensive Care Unit, I Stayed in the Car for a Week”

Looking forward to returning to her children, Sibel Dağ conveyed her experiences with the following words:“I had a brain hemorrhage five months ago. Then I stayed in the hospital for 20 days. After I came home, I had a breathing problem. When I stood up, I was choking and could not move. For this reason, I was repeatedly taken to the hospital by ambulance. I have had some really bad days. Finally, we found a bed in the intensive care unit of a private hospital, and I was referred there. They immediately took me into surgery at night, and I started breathing through a tracheostomy hole that opened into my throat. I stayed at the hospital for 20 days, and I left the hospital on Saturday. We experienced that great disaster on Sunday evening. After the earthquake, the hospital was also destroyed, and many people with whom I received treatment lost their lives. After the earthquake happened, I couldn't even rest; I stayed in the car for a week, even though I was discharged from the intensive care unit."

"My Children Were Calling to Me, But I Could Not Answer"

Dağ said, "After leaving the hospital where I stayed, I couldn't speak; My psychology was so bad. My children were saying something to me, but I could not answer. During the earthquake, I could not tell my children, ‘I'm here.' We stayed in the earthquake zone for a month and a half. Although I have been through many difficulties, my husband was constantly in touch with dear Prof. Dr. Sina Ercan; he eased our minds. I trusted our dear professor so much, came here, and had surgery. Now I am in good health, and I have also regained my voice. All I want is to reunite with my children. They also got very happy when they heard my voice.”

“There Is a Significant Difference Between My Wife's Current Condition And Her Condition Before the Surgery”

Stating that he was constantly in contact with Prof. Dr. Sina Ercan during the intensive care process of his wife in Antakya, 39-year-old Anıl Dağ said, “A tracheostomy was performed at the hospital where we stayed. I even thought of coming to Istanbul by an ambulance airplane. Dear Prof. Dr. Sina Ercan told me that if I did such a thing, I could lose my wife. Then, we stayed in the hospital there for about 20 days. We came out of intensive care. My wife has not recovered yet. On top of that, an earthquake happened. I could not know what to do with myself. I immediately called our dear professor, and he told me not to panic, that my wife had no vital risk, and that we should come to Istanbul for surgery when he called us. Both my wife and I were in a very bad mood until we came here. The people who loved us were also very sad. There is a difference between my wife's current condition and her condition before the surgery as great as the distance from here to İskenderun.

"It is the Greatest Happiness For Us to See Sibel Smiling”

Prof. Dr. Ercan continued his words as follows: "Interestingly enough, or we can call it a quirk of fate, when we completed this whole process and Mrs. Dağ could, at last, breathe through a tracheostomy, she was discharged on Saturday from the hospital where she stayed to wait for coming to İstanbul. On Sunday, an earthquake happened in Antakya and the hospital where she stayed collapsed. Unfortunately, many patients staying at that hospital with Mrs. Dağ are not among us now, and we wish mercy to them all. Going through such a period, on top of the stress caused by that disease and the subsequent problems, affected them very much as a family. Today we are together here; after a very complex windpipe surgery, Ms. Sibel can breathe very well now, her voice has recovered, and she has cheered up. We could see a smile on his face; this is the greatest happiness for us. When she arrived, neither she wanted to talk nor could she talk, but she is well now and will be reunited with her children in a few days.

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