ABU DHABI // An Egyptian once believed to be the world’s heaviest woman arrived in Abu Dhabi late last night where she will continue treatment after weight-loss surgery in India.
Eman Ahmed Abd El Aty weighed about 500 kilograms when she arrived in Mumbai in February, but has shed an astonishing 323kg since undergoing a series of medical procedures.
With her weight now at 176.6kg, she will begin a year-long course of physiotherapy at VPS Burjeel Hospital in Abu Dhabi, her doctors in Mumbai said.
Dr Yassin El Shahat, the hospital’s chief medical officer, said Ms El Aty had a comfortable journey to Abu Dhabi with no complications and arrived safely.
“I asked her personally how the journey was and she said she was very happy and it went very smooth,” said Dr El Shahat.
Doctors are planning her treatment and will do an assessment.
“Twenty doctors and specialists have been assigned to make a proper assessment and come up with a proper management plan, both short and long term,” said Dr El Shahat.
“The idea is to complete the treatment the patient received in [Mumbai]. We are going to assess the patient and see what has been done and complete it.”
The treatment could take six months to a year.
“The target is to make her normal or at least close to normal and, inshallah, it will take time, but we will have a proper plan of rehabilitation and treatment for her complications of obesity and do the best for her.”
Doctors hope expect her treatment to last at least six months, but it could take as long as a year.
“We are working with a special dietician and diabetic dietician and will control her diet in a very strict way,” he said.
Sanet Meyer, director of medical evacuation at Burjeel, said the hospital “arranged for a hydraulic stretcher from Italy for Eman’s journey”.
“She will have doctors, paramedics and nurses with her during the journey.”
Ms El Aty was put on a special liquid diet in India to reduce her weight enough so that doctors could perform bariatric surgery.
The stomach-shrinking bypass procedure is increasingly common in India, which has a growing problem with obesity, particularly in urban areas.
She had not left her home in Egypt’s Mediterranean port city of Alexandria for two decades until she was moved to India on a specially-modified Airbus plane in February.
Her family told doctors that as a child she had elephantiasis diagnosed, a condition that causes the limbs and other body parts to swell, leaving her almost immobile.
Ms El Aty has suffered a stroke and faced a series of other serious ailments owing to her weight, including diabetes, high blood pressure, hypertension and sleep deprivation.
She is unable to speak properly and is partially paralysed.
India is a major destination for medical tourists seeking services and no waiting lists at a fraction of the cost of western countries.
newsdesk@thenational.ae
Company Profile
Company name: Namara
Started: June 2022
Founder: Mohammed Alnamara
Based: Dubai
Sector: Microfinance
Current number of staff: 16
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Family offices
The specs: 2018 Maserati GranTurismo/GranCabrio
Price, base Dh485,000 (GranTurismo) and Dh575,000 (GranCabrio)
Engine 4.7L V8
Transmission Six-speed automatic
Power 460hp @ 7,000rpm
Torque 520Nm @ 4,750rpm
Fuel economy, combined 14.3L (GranTurismo) and 14.5L (GranCabrio) / 100km
Challenge Cup result:
1. UAE 3 faults
2. Ireland 9 faults
3. Brazil 11 faults
4. Spain 15 faults
5. Great Britain 17 faults
6. New Zealand 20 faults
7. Italy 26 faults
CHELSEA'S NEXT FIVE GAMES
Mar 10: Norwich(A)
Mar 13: Newcastle(H)
Mar 16: Lille(A)
Mar 19: Middlesbrough(A)
Apr 2: Brentford(H)
About Okadoc
Date started: Okadoc, 2018
Founder/CEO: Fodhil Benturquia
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Healthcare
Size: (employees/revenue) 40 staff; undisclosed revenues recording “double-digit” monthly growth
Funding stage: Series B fundraising round to conclude in February
Investors: Undisclosed
Company Profile
Name: HyveGeo
Started: 2023
Founders: Abdulaziz bin Redha, Dr Samsurin Welch, Eva Morales and Dr Harjit Singh
Based: Cambridge and Dubai
Number of employees: 8
Industry: Sustainability & Environment
Funding: $200,000 plus undisclosed grant
Investors: Venture capital and government
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Company Profile
Name: Direct Debit System
Started: Sept 2017
Based: UAE with a subsidiary in the UK
Industry: FinTech
Funding: Undisclosed
Investors: Elaine Jones
Number of employees: 8
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
The specs
Engine: 2.3-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 299hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 420Nm at 2,750rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 12.4L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh157,395 (XLS); Dh199,395 (Limited)
SPEC SHEET: NOTHING PHONE (2)
Display: 6.7” LPTO Amoled, 2412 x 1080, 394ppi, HDR10+, Corning Gorilla Glass
Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 2, octa-core; Adreno 730 GPU
Memory: 8/12GB
Capacity: 128/256/512GB
Platform: Android 13, Nothing OS 2
Main camera: Dual 50MP wide, f/1.9 + 50MP ultrawide, f/2.2; OIS, auto-focus
Main camera video: 4K @ 30/60fps, 1080p @ 30/60fps; live HDR, OIS
Front camera: 32MP wide, f/2.5, HDR
Front camera video: Full-HD @ 30fps
Battery: 4700mAh; full charge in 55m w/ 45w charger; Qi wireless, dual charging
Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.3, NFC (Google Pay)
Biometrics: Fingerprint, face unlock
I/O: USB-C
Durability: IP54, limited protection
Cards: Dual-nano SIM
Colours: Dark grey, white
In the box: Nothing Phone (2), USB-C-to-USB-C cable
Price (UAE): Dh2,499 (12GB/256GB) / Dh2,799 (12GB/512GB)
The specs: 2019 Mercedes-Benz C200 Coupe
Price, base: Dh201,153
Engine: 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Power: 204hp @ 5,800rpm
Torque: 300Nm @ 1,600rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 6.7L / 100km
ETFs explained
Exhchange traded funds are bought and sold like shares, but operate as index-tracking funds, passively following their chosen indices, such as the S&P 500, FTSE 100 and the FTSE All World, plus a vast range of smaller exchanges and commodities, such as gold, silver, copper sugar, coffee and oil.
ETFs have zero upfront fees and annual charges as low as 0.07 per cent a year, which means you get to keep more of your returns, as actively managed funds can charge as much as 1.5 per cent a year.
There are thousands to choose from, with the five biggest providers BlackRock’s iShares range, Vanguard, State Street Global Advisors SPDR ETFs, Deutsche Bank AWM X-trackers and Invesco PowerShares.
On racial profiling at airports