28-year-old receives a new life via a heart transplant from donor

Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India], September 11 (HBTV): The heart of 33-year-old Isaac, a Kollam native who succumbed to injuries from a road accident, was airlifted from Thiruvananthapuram to Kochi on Thursday to give a new lease of life to 28-year-old Ajeen Elias of Angamaly.

The heart was transported from KIMS Hospital to Thiruvananthapuram International Airport and flown by air ambulance to Ernakulam. It was later taken to Lisie Hospital, Kochi, where Dr Jose Periappuram and his team are leading the transplant surgery.

Isaac, a hotel owner from Kottarakkara, sustained critical injuries on September 6 after being hit by a bike while crossing the road. Despite being on ventilator support, his life could not be saved, and doctors confirmed brain death on Wednesday night. His family subsequently consented to organ donation through the Kerala Network for Organ Sharing.   

In addition to his heart, Isaac’s kidneys, liver, and corneas will also be donated, extending the gift of life to several patients.

Meanwhile, in a first-of-its-kind achievement in India, Narayana Health successfully performed three heart transplants within 12 hours at its flagship Narayana Health City in Bengaluru. This unprecedented feat by the hospital’s cardiac team saved three young lives through back-to-back surgeries.

The recipients, all men in their mid-30s, had been waiting for more than a year for suitable donors. They had reached a critical stage where rising lung pressure could soon have made them ineligible for transplantation.

The donor hearts were retrieved from Sparsh Hospital, Yelahanka; Aster CMI Hospital, Hebbal; and Manipal Hospital, Old Airport Road. They were transported to Narayana Health City through meticulously coordinated logistics and green corridors.

The effort brought together a multidisciplinary team of heart failure cardiologists, transplant surgeons, anaesthesiologists, perfusionists, transplant coordinators, and critical care specialists working in synchrony. The achievement was facilitated by Jeevan Sarthakathe (SOTTO – State Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation), which played a key role in enabling timely organ allocation and transportation across the city.

(ANI)