Thai cave rescue: boys were sedated for extraction mission

The soccer team rescued from a flooded cave lost weight with several suffering lung infections and one contracting pneumonia.

Hospital workers watch a press conference at their hospital where the rescued boys are tended to, in Chiang Rai province, northern Thailand. Picture: AP

The last four Thai footballers and their coach to emerge last night from Tham Luang cave were recovering well and were in good physical and mental condition, a senior Chiang Rai public health has said.

Chiang Rai Public Health Ministry inspector Thongchai Lertwilairattanapong told media at Chiang Rai hospital this morning that one of the boys had pneumonia and all five had higher Leukocyte levels than normal but were receiving antibiotics.

He said the boys had lost weight while they were trapped but “took care of themselves well in the cave.”

Thongchai said one member of the final group of four boys and the coach who arrived at a hospital Tuesday evening had a slight lung infection. Two of the first group had a lung infection as well, and Thongchai said they would need medicine for seven days.

The second group of four boys rescued Monday night had not yet seen their families but would be able to do so today, through the window of a hospital isolation room, he added.

Dr Thongchai said the three Thai navySEALS and Thai army medic, who were the last to emerge from the cave just after 10pm last night were also doing well.

It is understood they too will remain in quarantine for 48 hours while they underwent the same thorough medical assessment as the boys and their coach.

Soccer team sedated for dive

After nearly three weeks trapped inside a flooded cave, drinking only the water that dripped off stalactites, the young soccer team had to be given anti-anxiety medication to get them safely through the dangerous operation to extract them, it has emerged.

The last four soccer players and their coach emerged from the Tham Luang cave in Mae Sai overnight, and joined their teammates at Prachanukroh Hospital in Chiang Rai where they are undergoing medical checks.

The first eight boys have been reported as in surprisingly good condition despite some minor ailments, and have feasted on their first solid meal of chocolate spread on bread.

But Thai leader Prayuth Chan-ocha told reporters medical experts were forced to sedate some of the boys for their own safety during the treacherous evacuation effort through the flooded cave network.

A Thai military doctor also told media that the boys had been sedated before the challenging dive effort.

Health official Jesada Chokedamrongsuk said the full team appeared happy and had recorded no signs of fever which was a positive sign after nearly three weeks with limited food.

“They are sitting up, and today we will let them walk around a bit. They are eating light, non-spicy food such as rice gruel, and today the first group [to be freed] will eat normal food. They asked for chocolate spread on bread, and we allowed it.”

The rescue mission has taken four days to retrieve the entire team, with the assistance of 20 Australian personnel including 6 AFP divers, a navy clearance diver and several members of the Defence Force and Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Doctors are now treating the remaining team members in the Prachanukroh Hospital in Chiang Rai, 64km south of the cave site.

All boys have been given sunglasses to wear as their eyesight adjusts to normal light over the next few days.

While two players, extricated from the cave complex in earlier efforts, are being treated with antibiotics for mild pneumonia, most of the other boys appear in relatively good conditions.

One has reportedly suffered ankle abrasions, and others have low body temperatures after the long dive through flooded passageways.

All the players have been given vitamin injections and rehydration supplements while doctors take blood and urine samples to test for a range of infections and conditions they may have picked up inside the cave.

Local media reported the boys were being kept in a sterilised isolation unit, but some of their parents have been able to see them from the other side of the glass.

Public Health Ministry deputy director-general Jesada Chokdumrongsuk said the boys would remain in hospital for at least another week while their blood tests was analysed.

He said they were doing very well and were now able to consume solid food.

“The kids are footballers so they have high immune systems,” Mr Jesada said.

One emergency service worker told Reuters that the biggest concern was that the boys had contracted infections.

“There are all kinds of diseases in the cave, from bats, from dirty water. Everything in there is very dirty,” the worked said.

Doctors have a long list of physical and psychological conditions to consider that the team may have picked up during their time inside the small, wet, humid cave.

The team survived for nine days by drinking water that had dripped off stalac­tites hanging from the cave ceiling after becoming trapped by a flash flood on June 23.

Staff at Chiang Rai Hospital, 70km south of the cave site, cleared an entire floor to receive the team as soon as they were evacuated from the cave.

As each young player emerged from the cave site, during separate missions on Sunday, Monday and last night, they were not allowed to hug or touch their parents and were placed into isolation at the hospital.

Doctors will test the team for common conditions such as malnutrition, dehydration and hypothermia as well as the rare and potentially deadly “cave disease”, known as histoplasmosis.

Caused by a fungus found in bird or bat droppings, the infection can spread in humid areas when microscopic spores are inhaled.

Symptoms, which are similar to pneumonia, can develop from three to 17 days after exposure to the fungus and can result in fevers, chills, chest pains and a dry cough.

If left untreated, the disease can spread to other parts of the body, causing vision loss, weight loss, shortness of breath, and in some cases lesions on the body.

Cave disease can be tested through urine, blood and tissue samples as well as a chest X-ray and is usually treated with antifungal medication and close observation for several months.

Doctors will also look for the presence of dangerous bacteria known as leptospirosis in the players’ bloodstreams.

The bacteria can cause severe bleeding in the lungs, meningitis and, if left untreated, can be fatal.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop are preparing to host a reception to welcome home the team of Australian experts who assisted in the rescue efforts.

With AP