11-month-old Shreejit Hingankar doesn't need to go under the knife

It's happy Diwali in true sense for 11-month-old Shreejit Hingankar — who currently weighs around 17kg and suffers from Leptin gene mutation/deficiency that causes obesity. To treat the condition he would have had to go under the knife, an option the doctors and his parents have been skeptical about. 

However, a special genetic test conducted on Shreejit revealed that his leptin receptor is normal and through leptin injections his problem may be solved without undergoing any surgery.

The only problem for the Pune-based Hingankar family is the unavailability of leptin injection in the country and doctors would have to import it from abroad.

Shreejit's father works as a temporary watchman at a private medial college in Pimpri and the family is unable to bear the expenses of his treatment. Hence, to meet up with he cost of the injection — around Rs10 lakh — the doctors treating Shreejit have decided to raise funds.

15 days after delivery, Shreejit's weight started growing at an unbelievable rate. He weighed around 3kg when he was just 15-day-old and since then it has always been increasing. After consulting many doctors, the family finally met a bariatric surgeon in Pune and started the treatment.

The surgeon, too, was not in favour of carrying out the surgery and got Shreejit to Mumbai for second opinion. Last month, Shreejit came to Mumbai where he met several doctors, including Dr Parag Tamhankar, divisional head at Parel-based Genetic Research Centre, National Institute for Research in Reproductive Health (NIRRH). 

Tamhankar conducted a Leptin Receptor Deficiency (LRD) test on Shreejit to find out whether the baby had any LRD related issues, the result of which has just come out.

Because of this condition, Shreejit had delayed milestones. He cannot sit on his own for a long time and also can't stand and walk – even with support. He also has valgus, a condition in which a bone or joint is twisted outward from the centre of the body. He also suffers from breathlessness.

“This is a new case to me, so now I have started approaching some of the pharma companies in England. For this patient we will raise funds and arrange the injections. We recently got the report from the NIRRH. Now, we will decide the treatment in accordance with the report,” said Dr Shashank Shah, former president of the Obesity Surgery Society of India (OBSSI) and bariatric surgeon.

He added: “Shreejit had leptin gene mutation and it led to deficiency of leptin hormone. Fortunately, the leptin receptors are normal. He can be partly treated with leptin injections which are very expensive and are required life long treatment. Replacement by leptin injections may reduce his hunger and improve metabolism.”