Mumbai's 34th heart transplant saves 46-year-old woman

A team of surgeons conducted Mumbai's 34th heart transplant onto a 46-year-old woman, an official said on Wednesday.

The donor 44-year-old woman was admitted to the Jaslok Hospital in south Mumbai and was declared brain dead following intracerebral bleeding and brain stem haemorrhage.

After a counselling session, her family consented to donate her heart, kidneys, liver, skin and corneas to those needing these organs.

Both the donor and the beneficiary women were local Mumbai residents.

The beneficiary woman from Andheri, suffering from dilated cardiomyopathy, had been awaiting a donor since over a month.

The heart was harvested, a Green Corridor was laid out by the Traffic Department and the organ was rushed from Jaslok Hospital to Fortis Hospital, Mulund, a distance of 28 km covered in 24 minutes.

After it reached the hospital, the heart was taken straight to the operation theatre where a team led by Dr. Anvay Mulay, Chief of Cardiac Transplant Team, conducted the surgery Wednesday afternoon.

"The surgery is successful and the patient is now stable. She will be under observation for up to 72 hours," Mulay said.

Fortis Hospital Zonal Director Dr. S. Narayani said people are responding warmly to the cause of organ donation which helps save critical lives.

Fortis Healthcare Ltd, an integrated healthcare delivery provider, has hospitals in India, Dubai, Mauritius and Sri Lanka with around 10,000 beds.

--IANS

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