Abu Dhabi: She was once dubbed the world’s heaviest woman, but Eman Abdul Atti’s condition has shown impressive improvements, her doctors in the capital announced on Tuesday.
The 36-year-old Egyptian has regained strength in her arms, and is able to move them freely, and is also being orally fed two meals at present.
Doctors at the Burjeel Hospital Abu Dhabi added that her bedsores, which were designated as a medical urgency when she first arrived because of their severity, have improved by 75 per cent. In a video supplied by the hospital, Abdul Atti was seen lifting a bottle of water to her mouth, and throwing a balloon back and forth. She also waved at the camera and greeted those around her.
“According to our observations and monitoring, the improvement in Abdul Atti’s condition is impressive,” said Dr Yassin El Shahat, chief medical officer at the hospital. He added that many of the improvements had not been seen since Abdul Atti had suffered a stroke two-and-a-half years ago.
“Now, as expected, we will start to implement [stage 2 of her treatment],” he added. This includes an added focus on Abdul Atti’s rehabilitation.
“By the end of this stage, we expect that Eman can feed herself by mouth, and [will be] able to [move around in] an electric wheelchair after achieving reasonable weight loss by means of a strict dietary regimen,” Dr El Shahat added.
As reported by Gulf News, Abdul Atti first arrived in the capital on May 4. Her bedridden plight had first received public attention when her family had posted a desperate plea for help online to Egyptian President Abdul Fattah Al Sissi. They had claimed that Abdul Atti suffered from elephantiasis, a parasitic infection that leads to extreme swelling in the arms and legs, and had become confined to bed since she was 12.
In February 2017, Abdul Atti was flown to a Mumbai–based hospital, where she had undergone bariatric surgery. But a subsequent dispute about her weight loss and treatment had led Abdul Atti’s family to reach out to Burjeel Hospital, which had previously offered to treat her.
Upon her arrival, doctors said at the time that their primary short-term aim was to treat Abdul Atti’s pressing medical concerns, including her bedsores, urinary tract infection, speech-related concerns and mental well-being. They also declined to reveal Abdul Atti’s weight, and instead called upon people to respect the patient’s privacy.
Dr El Shahat said on Tuesday that Abdul Atti’s short-term treatment had been expected to take three months, but the efforts of the treating team had resulted in significant improvements in the patient’s psychological condition. Her speech and voice have also become clearer, and as Gulf News reported last month, she is now able to move her lower limbs. Abdul Atti can also sit up in bed and in a wheelchair, and Dr El Shahat said the “next step is to administer her medicines orally, as well as get rid of the feeding tube”.
The hospital has not yet revealed Abdul Atti’s weight, but Dr El Shahat said that her weight is reducing steadily under a strict low-calorie diet. He also said that there are plans to soon stop Abdul Atti’s anti-epileptic and anti-coagulation medications, and taper off her steroid therapy.