An eye procedure performed on incarcerated former prime minister Imran Khan was completed without complications, and he remained stable throughout, the executive director of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), Professor Dr Rana Imran Sikander has confirmed. 

Speaking early Friday, the hospital chief said the treatment lasted around 20 minutes and was carried out smoothly, days after Information Minister Attaullah Tarar confirmed that Khan had been taken to a hospital in Islamabad for an eye-related medical procedure late on January 24.

“It [the procedure] was completed smoothly in approximately 20 minutes. During the treatment, the patient remained vitally stable and was discharged with routine post-procedure care instructions and follow-up advice and documents,” said Sikander.

The clarification from PIMS comes a day after Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) moved the Supreme Court of Pakistan, requesting the apex court’s assistance in arranging a meeting between the party’s founder and his personal doctors through the Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP).

Dr Sikander said the 74-year-old former premier had complained of “reduced vision in his right eye”, prompting a thorough evaluation by a “qualified ophthalmologist” from PIMS, who conducted a “complete eye assessment at Adiala jail”.

According to the hospital head, the medical team carried out “strict lab examination, [ocular] endoscopy, intraocular pressure measurement, essential laboratory tests and OCT of the retina” as part of the assessment.

He added that the findings led to a diagnosis of right central vein occlusion, after which hospital-based treatment was advised.

“Accordingly, Mr Niazi was brought to PIMS on the night of last Saturday, Sunday for the advised procedure.”

Dr Sikander said that upon arrival at the hospital, the former prime minister was briefed in detail about the procedure.

“Informed consent was obtained from the patient prior to the procedure. The procedure was carried out in the operation theatre under standard sterile protocol and monitoring,” said Dr Sikander.