Q: This question is related to my sister's husband. Five years back, all of a sudden, he vomited blood but survived. His platelets dropped to 40,000. After that he never recovered. He had a very strong physique but now he is very pale and weak. He has to be admitted to hospital often and the expenses are too high. Now, he also suffers from hydrocoele but it is under control. He also has a hernia and was admitted to the hospital for an operation. Can he be safely operated at a lower budget? The cost of surgery we have been told is between 1 to 1.25 lakhs.

A:Normally, a hernia operation costs about Rs 20,000. A hydrocoele operation costs about half as much. If there is a problem with platelets, the costs can go up markedly, because your patient may require platelet transfusion, which costs at least Rs.10,000. Your question is: can this safely be operated in a lower budget? The answer is yes, of course. Treatment in a good government hospital is effective and very cheap.