Latest tests cause confusion over Nawaz’s renal function

LAHORE: There is confusion over former prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s renal function after a consultant urologist’s observations contradicted Maryam Nawaz’s claim of deterioration in his father’s kidney functions.

According to the Kot Lakhpat Jail superintendent’s letter to the IG Prisons, the consultant urologist from the Jinnah Hospital, Lahore, Prof Dr Naveed Iqbal, examined Nawaz Sharif inside the jail on Saturday and gave his observation that “all lab investigations are within normal limits”. He advised increase in fluid intake, decrease in protein intake and continuation of previous medicines.

The concerns regarding Nawaz Sharif’s renal disorder grew after Maryam claimed that the former premier’s blood tests reveal a further raise in his creatinine levels, which means his kidney function has deteriorated. To support her argument, she shared the Chughtai Lab’s diagnostic report dated 22-03-2019 on the social media that suggested urea (serum) at 66 mg/dl against a normal value of 10-50 after slightly lowering from 70 mg/dl on 13-01-2019, while creatinine (serum) at 1.52 mg/dl on 22-03-2019 against a normal value of 0.72 to 1.25, raising from 1.41 mg/dl on 13-01-2019. “His kidney disease is already at stage 3. The pain in the flanks persists,” she claimed.

Responding to the consultant urologist’s observation, Dr Adnan Khan, Nawaz’s personal physician, responded that further investigations such as Ultrasound KUB should have been done to gauge the extent of the disease. One can’t give conclusions based on nothing, knowing the already documented underlying CKD (stage 3), nephrolithiasis and bilateral multiple renal cysts. He claimed that Nawaz’s recent renal profile shows rise in serum creatinine levels. High powered medical boards constituted earlier have already documented chronic kidney disease, stage 3, eGFR is 46 ml/min. He contended that a nephrologist’s opinion should have been sought rather than of a urologist, claiming that he did not examine Sharif. “How could one just have a consultation only and conclude ‘all ok’,” he wondered.

Earlier, a controversy erupted regarding alleged tampering of former premier’s diagnostic report following Maryam Nawaz’s act of sharing his blood test reports from her personal Twitter account. It allowed social media trolls to access Nawaz Sharif’s test report from diagnostic lab’s database, and leaving derogatory remarks against him.

An image of a lab test report bearing patient’s name, phone number and identity number 13001-19-104183295 was circulating on the social media. In the image, someone had replaced the residential address on the report with a phrase saying, “Please return Pakistan's looted money and freely live anywhere”. The Twitter management has suspended the account of the said social media troll.

An official of the said diagnostic lab, while seeking anonymity, termed Maryam Nawaz’s act ‘irresponsible and unethical’, especially for sharing patient’s reports without even blurring the identification code and personal details. A large number of people, particularly PML-N supporters, ran hashtag campaign #BoycottChughtaiLab against online system’s vulnerability to leakage.

Maryam lashed out at PTI supporters clandestinely operating through the diagnostic lab. “I remember one of them disguised as a doctor trying to barge in on my unconscious mother in the ICU. The hospital had to call the police,” she wrote on Twitter.

Punjab Health Minister Dr Yasmin Rashid, however, said the private lab’s website was hacked in an attempt to tamper with the test report of Nawaz Sharif to gain sympathies and create justification for his release. “The Punjab government is ready to provide treatment to Nawaz Sharif in hospital and by doctors of his choice,” she added.

However, the Chughtai Lab’s official statement clarified that the diagnostic values could not be changed as the system only allows the patient concerned to update his or her address. “A few negative elements misused the lab ID of a particular patient and ridiculed a famous political personality by adding derogatory remarks in the patient's bio-data, which is highly condemnable,” the statement added without mentioning Nawaz Sharif’s name.

However, the official statement of the Chughtai Lab claimed, “We never want to expose any patient’s online reports to tampering, and we do regret that the records were changed. All patients deserve their privacy. The design of this infraction was to create misunderstanding about the health issue of the patient and to lacerate the feelings of millions of people.

“We have filed an application to the FIA and requested the law-enforcing agencies to take strict action against the culprits,” said the statement. Meanwhile, it said, we have blocked online access to the patient’s lab reports to prevent any further tampering with the patient's online profile, and making our database and IT system safe and secure.

It said that the patient’s online lab record has been restored to original condition and shall be shared with the family with a different patient ID number, so that the privacy of the data can be maintained.

Meanwhile, former interior minister Ahsan Iqbal on Sunday said the federal government is showing non-serious attitude towards the health condition of Nawaz Sharif.

"The same attitude was showed by government representatives during the illness of the late Kulsoom Nawaz," he said, adding that the government will be responsible in case of any unforeseen circumstances. He said the PTI government's inexperience has decimated the national economy.