The Hindu : Harvested organs transplanted

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Mar 14, 2004

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

Harvested organs transplanted

By Ramya Kannan

CHENNAI, MARCH 13. The organs harvested from a deceased labourer, Ravi, in the Government General Hospital here recently, were transplanted in three patients at the Chennai Transplant Centre, Madras Medical Mission.

A surgical team, comprising S. Shanmuga Bhaskar, S. Radhakrishnan, S. Selvakumar and S. Saravanan, performed the operations, using the small intestine and two kidneys removed from the deceased.

Two patients with chronic renal failure received one kidney each. They are said to be `doing well.'

The intestine was transplanted in Bama Pughazendi (35), who developed the short gut syndrome — a condition in which the small bowel is not of the required length. ``In most adults, the length of the short intestine is between three and five metres.

The minimum length required for its proper functioning is one metre. However, for Bama, it was only 30-cm long,'' said Dr. Shanmuga Bhaskar.

The short gut syndrome developed as a result of operations performed on her in her hometown Thanjavur, to remove cysts in the small intestine.

As the short intestine malfunctioned, the body was not absorbing any nutrient.

Over one-and-a-half years, Bama lost more than 25 kg. She was on Total Parenteral Nutrition, a process in which nutrition composites are fed intravenously. Pre-digested food is sent directly into the bloodstream, where the nutrients are absorbed, obviating the need for the small intestine.

``Apart from organ transplantation, this is the only solution. But it is expensive and cumbersome,'' Dr. Bhaskar said. ``It could cost up to Rs. 2,000 a day. We have to find different veins, as they tend to clog with the feed. Eventually, it might become difficult to find a vein.'' Prosthetic implants were impossible, as scientists were unable to replicate the complexity of the small intestine.

A gap of six hours occurred between the removal of the organs and the transplantation operation. ``Bama has tolerated the procedure very well. She is stable in the intensive care unit. But we will have to wait for 10-15 days to see if the operation has been a success.''

The doctors have decided to waive their fees and pharma companies are trying to chip in, helping a family which has already spent close to Rs. 12 lakhs over the last two years on her treatment.

A tube running through her nose provides the nutrition supplements now.

It will be sometime before Bama is able to `eat' food. But, when she does, it might well be a taste of heaven!

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