64-yr-old suffers cardiac arrest, dies; two in ICU

MUMBAI: A 64-year-old Nalasopara resident died after suffering cardiac arrest before completing the ‘Senior Citizens’ Run’ at the Tata Mumbai Marathon on Sunday. Another patient underwent a life-saving angioplasty after suffering a heart attack after finishing the half-marathon.

Around 9am, Gajendra Manjalkar, who had completed 4km of the 4.2km event, collapsed on the road. Volunteers rushed him to Bombay Hospital where he was declared dead on arrival. According to doctors, Manjalkar was diabetic and on medication. “We tried to revive him through shock therapy, but he didn’t respond,” said a senior doctor from the hospital. Marine Lines police station has filed an accidental death case.

Fellow runners said they were shocked when Manjalkar collapsed during the run.

“We had been running for 50 minutes when he started panting heavily. He couldn’t keep his balance and before we could realise what was happening, he collapsed,” said Jagdesh Pathan, a fellow runner.

Though one other participant died in the 2018 event due to cardiac arrest, no deaths were reported last year. “Manjalkar was picked up by the ambulance on the route. After reviving him at the medical base camp, he was shifted to Bombay Hospital where he died,” said Dr Vijay D’silva, director of critical care and medical affairs, Asian Heart Institute, the medical partner of the marathon.

Himanshu Thakkar, a halfmarathon participant who completed the run on his 47th birthday, suffered a heart attack after crossing the finish line. He was rushed to Bombay Hospital where a diagnosis revealed that one of his arteries was blocked while the other one was damaged. “It was a tricky case as both of his arteries weren’t functioning,” said a senior doctor from the hospital who operated on Thakkar.

Half-marathoner Sanjay Bafna, 51, a resident of Vasai, suffered a stroke during the event and is in the intensive care unit (ICU) for observation.

Along with these three patients, 14 other runners were admitted to different hospitals on Sunday.

“Often runners don’t consult physicians before applying for the marathon. The organisers should make it compulsory,” said Dr Gautam Bhansali, consultant physician from Bombay Hospital.