Central Institute Keynote: Invited Faculty at JIPMER MCPTS 2024
The Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education & Research (JIPMER) in Pondicherry—an autonomous Institute of National Importance under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India—invited Dr. Raghul M to deliver the keynote address at the prestigious Master Class in Pediatric Thoracic Surgery (MCPTS 2024). Addressing department heads, thoracic surgeons, and postgraduates from premier institutes across India, Dr. Raghul M’s keynote focused on advanced Video-Assisted Thoracoscopic Surgery (VATS) in infants and children, showcasing complex thoracic reconstructions performed without cutting ribs or splitting the sternum.
National Milestone: First in India to Resect a 600g Thymolipoma via VATS
During his keynote presentation, Dr. Raghul M shared his landmark surgical milestone: the successful thoracoscopic extirpation of a massive 600-gram thymolipoma occupying the anterior mediastinum in a young child—the first reported case of its kind in Indian medical history—subsequently published in the Indian Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery (IJTCVS 2025). Traditionally, massive mediastinal tumors in children necessitate an extensive median sternotomy or clamshell thoracotomy with substantial blood loss and prolonged mechanical ventilation. Dr. Raghul M demonstrated how precise low-pressure CO2 insufflation, 5mm high-definition cameras, and ultrasonic harmonic vessel sealing allowed complete tumor mobilization while protecting the phrenic and vagus nerves, pericardium, and superior vena cava.
Preserving Musculoskeletal Integrity: Sparing Children Lifetime Deformity
Pediatric thoracic anatomy is delicate; cutting major chest wall muscles and spreading ribs with metal retractors frequently results in severe long-term morbidities: intercostal nerve entrapment, chronic pain syndromes, chest wall asymmetry, and acquired thoracic scoliosis. Dr. Raghul M demonstrated that keyhole VATS for congenital pulmonary airway malformations (CPAM), bronchogenic cysts, and complex parapneumonic empyemas allows children to breathe comfortably immediately after extubation, eliminates splinting pain, and allows discharge home within 48 to 72 hours with perfect spinal alignment.
Peer Endorsement from India’s Premier Central Institute
JIPMER is universally recognized alongside AIIMS New Delhi and PGIMER Chandigarh as one of the top three central medical institutes in India. To be invited as a keynote faculty orator by JIPMER’s Department of Pediatric Surgery is one of the highest possible peer endorsements in academic medicine, verifying that a surgeon's published operative techniques represent the national gold standard taught to future surgical leaders.
Ceremonial Podium Honors & Memento Handover
From the MCPTS 2024 podium inside JIPMER’s main auditorium, Dr. Raghul M concluded his masterclass to sustained applause from senior thoracic faculties. The JIPMER Organizing Committee and Head of Pediatric Surgery formally presented Dr. Raghul M with the commemorative faculty memento and official certificate of appreciation.