After spending two decades bedridden due to a devastating spinal illness, a 52-year-old man from Kiambu County is finally walking again, thanks to the efforts of medical specialists at Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH).
In a statement on Tuesday, November 11, KNH revealed how its team helped Ibrahim Mungai reclaim his mobility after 20 years of immobility caused by tuberculosis of the spine.
“After 20 years in bed, Ibrahim Mungai (52 years) is walking back to life. In 2004, tuberculosis of the spine left him bedridden. For over two decades, in Kikuyu, Kiambu County, he faced the immense challenges of immobility and the secondary health issues that followed,” the statement read.
KNH explained that Mungai’s condition worsened over the years, leading to severe infections and kidney complications that threatened his life.
However, the hospital’s medical team mounted an intensive recovery plan that eventually pulled Mungai back from the brink.
“In July 2025, his journey took a critical turn when he was referred to Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH). He arrived fighting for his life with severe pressure sores, a rampant Urinary Tract Infection, and failing kidneys. The situation became so dire he fell into a deep, 3-day coma.
“But our medical team refused to give up. After six intensive dialysis sessions, a miracle happened: Ibrahim woke up. He then bravely underwent a 2-hour surgery on August 4th, 2025, to address a serious scrotal infection and began the long road to recovery,” the statement added.
KNH credited the successful outcome to a multidisciplinary approach that went beyond surgery to focus on rehabilitation and holistic recovery.
Today, Mungai has regained much of his independence and mobility, an outcome once thought impossible.
“A dedicated team of wound care nurses, physiotherapists, counsellors, and nutritionists worked with him for three months to heal not just his body, but his spirit. The results? Nothing short of amazing.
“After more than twenty years, Ibrahim can now sit up on his own, move independently in a wheelchair and stand on his own two feet. He is now actively and joyfully working to walk again,” the statement further read.
Speaking about his renewed lease on life, Mungai expressed immense gratitude and hope for the future.
“I have gotten a positive overview about life. I want to go back to my community and continue with my cobbler business,” he said.
