PUNE: For the first time, five major transplants simultaneously took place at Sahyadri Super Speciality Hospitals, Nagar Road, as a 23-year-old student gave a new lease of life to three patients.
After the student was declared brain dead on September 17, after meeting with an accident in Vishrantwadi two days earlier, his family members made the noble gesture of donating his heart, two kidneys, liver and pancreas. The organs were harvested on September 18 at 2 am; his heart, one kidney and pancreas were brought to Deccan Gymkhana at 6.25 am.
The heart was transplanted on a 65-year-old professor of Forensic Medicine and HOD at Talegaon Medical College at Sahyadri Super Speciality Hospital, Deccan Gymkhana. One of the kidneys and the pancreas were simultaneously transplanted at the Deccan Unit on a 55-year-old patient from Chennai suffering from type II diabetes leading to kidney and pancreas failure. At the Nagar Road unit, the other kidney and liver were transplanted simultaneously on a 32-year-old male I from Karad who was suffering from Hepatitis B and chronic kidney disease.
Heart Transplant Surgeon at Sahyadri Hospitals Dr Manoj Durairaj said, “Once we received information about the brain-dead patient and that he had given consent, our team went to Sahyadri Nagar Road and retrieved the heart at 6.15 am and our team arrived at Sahyadri Deccan Unit at 6.25 am. The heart was transplanted on a 65-year-old forensic medicine professor residing at Kothrud. The surgery took two hours and post transplant, the heart started beating vigorously in the new body.”
Dr Bipin Vibute said, “Liver and second kidney harvested from the donor was transplanted on a patient who was suffering from chronic kidney disease as well as Hepatitis-B. His condition was worsening and transplant was the only option for survival.”
Sahyadri Hospitals Unit Head Dr Ketan Apte said, “Pune is emerging as one of the leading centres for organ donation and transplant programmes. This has been possible due to availability of world class facilities, team of skilled doctors, anaesthetists, medical social workers and support staff. The role played by Zonal Transplant Coordination Centre and the traffic police has been central to the success of our transplant programme. Above all we would like to salute the donors.”
