Sandhya theatre stampede: Condition of 9-year-old Sritej still critical, say doctors

Crowd cheers as Allu Arjun arrives at theatre (left); Cops perform CPR on a boy after ‘Pushpa 2’ movie premiere stampede (right)

HYDERABAD: The nine-year-old boy, Sritej, injured in the Dec 4 stampede, continues to battle for his life.
While the boy is semi-conscious and tolerating feeds, he remains dependent on ventilator support, said doctors attending to him on Friday.
“We tried to remove him from the ventilator, but we had to put him back on it. He is hemodynamically stable but remains critical,” said Dr Chetan R Mundada, chief paediatric intensivist at KIMS Secunderabad.
Earlier on Friday December 6, doctors at KIMS, Secunderabad said Sritej’s condition remains critical.
“However, there is a slight improvement in his health since the time he was brought to the hospital. He is trying to move and open his eyes but is still not completely conscious. He continues to require ventilator support. He is also having intermittent fever which is expected. He has begun to stabilise,” said Dr Chetan R Mundada, chief paediatric intensivist.
Sritej was taken to the emergency ward in a semiconscious state after he was injured in the stampede outside Sandhya theatre on Dec 4. CPR was administered on the spot by police personnel and bystanders, which was instrumental in reviving the child, enabling further medical intervention.
“Currently he is on mechanical ventilator requiring minimal settings and minimal inotropic support, neurologically improving with no clinical seizures,” said the doctor, adding, “However, his condition remains critical, and the patient is under intensive care and close monitoring, as the medical team works to stabilise him further.”