A beluga whale at the Shedd Aquarium became the first to recover from general anesthesia used during surgery this week.
The 12-year-old female whale, named Kimalu, underwent a first-of-its-kind surgery Tuesday to remove a growing network of cysts near her blowhole on her head and neck.
The surgery was supported by 30 experts from the aquarium and from across the country, said Dr. Karisa Tang, vice president of animal health at the Shedd Aquarium. She said she found an immense sense of community in the way her colleagues showed up to help with the surgery.
“It also still touches me that so many people would be so willing to drop everything and come and lend their expertise, and passion and love for these animals to the Shedd,” Tang told the Sun-Times. “It was really tapping into the network of friends.”
Kimalu, who was born at the Shedd, is now resting and recovering in a medical habitat. She is being monitored and given antibiotics, incision-site care, pain medicine, post-surgery nutrition and extra attention from her care team, Tang said.
The team noticed early signs of the cysts when she was just three years old, but never saw any flare-ups until recently, Tang said. While doing a daily check-in late last year, they noticed a large network of cysts on Kimalu’s head and neck.
After taking some samples and doing ultrasound scans, the team decided to perform a CT scan on Kimalu. It was then decided that the beluga whale, who weighs roughly 1,065 pounds, would need surgery, which Tang said was the only option.
“There were a lot of emotions before, during and after, for sure,” Tang said. “It’s hope, it’s optimism, and there’s definitely nervousness and fear.”
Tang said the process of putting the whale under anesthesia was fairly standard and similar to putting other animals like cats and dogs under.
The surgeons made an incision to get underneath the skin and blubber of the whale, which is around five centimeters thick, Tang said. They then scooped out as much of the mass as they could, closed the incision and inserted a drain to reduce the risk of infection.
While the surgery was successful, helping Kimalu come out from under the anesthesia was the scariest part, Tang said. Members of Kimalu’s care team talked to her, played sounds from her beluga pod and made sure she was warm. Once she was back to breathing on her own, the team moved her into her medical habitat and swam with her until she woke up.
Tang stressed that while she and the team are grateful that the procedure went well, this is just the start of Kimalu’s recovery. The team is letting Kimalu take the lead on her recovery, and there is no exact timeline to complete recovery.
“This is just day one of a very long journey,” Tang said. “We’re so grateful that we’re on the other side of this part of the journey, but it is certainly not over… It’s not full relief, she’s not out of the woods.”