A brain dead man saved 6 lives by multiple organ donation

New Delhi: A 48-year-old brain-dead man saved six lives by donating not only his heart but also his lungs, kidneys and liver.A man's life was saved when he got a heart from Vijayawada at Fortis Escorts, Okhla.

A team of doctors of  ''Advanced Heart Failure Programme'' led by Dr Z S Meharwal and Dr Vishal Rastogi at Fortis Escorts Heart Institute's yet another heart transplant on a 60-old male from Delhi, as his condition was deteriorating.  

The heart had been harvested from a 48-year-old male, who met a RTA and was declared brain dead on November 10. 

Team FEHI received a call from National Organ & Tissue Transplant Organisation on the evening regarding availability of a potential donor heart at Aayush Hospital, Vijayawada. After confirmation of organ allocation, the harvesting team led by Dr Manmohan, left for the heart retrieval. The team had left FEHI at 0300 hrs on November 11. 

The team after assessing the condition of the heart retrieved the heart and returned to FEHI at 12 midnight. This required great coordination between the Vijayawada Police and Delhi Police, leading to a unhindered support and thereby reducing the Ischemic time.  

A green corridor was created from Airport T3 to Fortis Escorts Heart Institute, Okhla, covering a distance of 22.5 km in 19 minutes. They joined the team in FEHI and worked whole night. The surgery went well and patient is now stable.

Dr Vishal Rastogi, Head of the Advanced Heart Failure Programme at Fortis Escorts Heart Institute, Okhla, said, the recipient was very symptomatic and was continuously out of breath even by slightest of activity. He was recommended for an early transplant as he was registered on NOTTO website. 

On the condition of the patient, Dr Z S Meharwal, Head of Adult Cardiac Surgery, VAD & Heart Transplantation Programme said, "A heart transplant is required for patients where all the treatments fail. Optimum timing of surgery (heart transplant) is very important in these patients for good outcome before multi-organ dysfunction sets in."

Mr Bidesh Chandra Paul, Zonal Director, FEHI, said, "Our first heart transplant took place in January 2015. Over the past four years, we have come a long way. It is a complicated process, which involves co-ordination and synchronisation with different stakeholders. We receive support from NOTTO, the Traffic Police of Delhi and other authorities, our clinicians and nursing staff who play an imperative role in making each transplant a reality."(UNI)