Jyoti Basu condition very critical

The condition of Communist Party of India - , 96, turned extremely critical on Saturday (January 16) evening after he suffered multi-organ failure, a medical bulletin said in Kolkata. The bulletin by the AMRI Hospital, where Basu is admitted, said, "He is in a state of multi-organ failure. His condition is extremely critical."

Dr Ajit Kumar Maity, Basu's personal physician and a member of the medical board at the hospital, said, "All five vital organs -- heart, lungs, kidney, brain and liver -- are not functioning properly." Asked about the chances of recovery of the nonagenarian leader, Maity said, "At this age, given the complications he is suffering from, there is little hope of any good result. The doctors are doing their best." He said Basu was put on Slow Low Efficiency Daily Dialysis at noon. When a patient is unable to withstand normal dialysis, SLEDD is resorted to.

Hospital Executive Director D N Agarwal earlier said that Basu was on full ventilatory support and there was also a further drop in his urine output. Basu was admitted to AMRI Hospital with pneumonia on January 1 and put on a ventilator on January 6.

Actor Amitabh Bachchan visited Basu in hospital and stayed there for about half an hour. CPI-M politburo members Sitaram Yechuri and Brinda Karat, former Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee and former chief minister Siddharta Shankar Ray were scheduled to visit Basu.

- Asian Tribune -