TEHRAN - Cosmetic surgeons at Fatemeh Zahra Hospital in Tehran have performed complimentary surgeries on five patients down with Epidermolysis bullosa (EB), the head of EB Health House in Tehran said on Monday.

According to IRNA, Hojjatoleslam Seyyed Hamid Reza Hashemi Golpaygani reported that over the past two months five EB patients, whose fingers were fused together, had undergone cosmetic surgery in that hospital.

If EB patients postpone or delay seeking operation and treatment particularly on their fingers, they will lose fingers mobility forever.

Pointing to at least another 15 EB patients awaiting to go under the knife, Hashemi Golpaygani estimated the cost of the operation to be at 400 million rials (about $11,000), “but thanks to health minister’s directive the surgery comes at no cost to patients.”

Expressing gratitude to the health minister for his goodwill, Hashemi Golpaygani called on the ministry to provide further assistance for the EB patients in need of surgery to reduce the average waiting time for their operation.

Hashemi Golpaygani also asked people to refer EB patients from across the country to the EB Health House in Tehran so that they can take advantage of the services of the facility.

Back in June of 2015, the first EB Health House in Tehran was opened to provide patients with free medical services, including continuous supply of their dressing and medicines as well as diagnosis, control and prognosis of the patients’ illness by specialists.

The establishment of the Health House followed an instruction from Health Minister Hassan Qazizadeh Hashemi whose ministry is eyeing to resolve the problems surrounding the EB patients and is determined to alleviate their misery.

Around two months ago, the health minister dropped in at the Health House and promised the patients to provide necessary assistance to resolve their eye problems, dental and gastroenterology issues.

EB is a group of inherited connective tissue diseases that cause blisters in the skin and mucosal membranes. It is a result of a defect in anchoring between the epidermis and dermis, resulting in friction and skin fragility.

Although 420 EB patients are receiving medical care at the EB Health House, it is estimated that another 800 to 1,000 patients are yet to get help at the center.