Heart harvested in Bengaluru, transplanted in Hyderabad

Hyderabad, February 28

In a swift operation, a heart harvested from an accident-victim was air-lifted on Saturday from Bengaluru in one hour and 30 minutes and transplanted successfully in a 46-year-old woman at Yashoda hospital here.

A 15-member team headed by Dr A G K Gokhale peformed the tranplantation surgery on Padma, a home-maker from Kothagudem in Khammam district of Telangana.

"It took just about one hour 30 minutes for transportation of the live heart from Victoria Hospital in Bengaluru," a release from Yashoda Hospital in Secundarabad here said.

Padma, who suffered from 'dilated cardiomyopathy with Severe LV dysfunction', was advised to undergo heart transplantation and got registered with Jeevandhaan, a government organisation.

She was staying near the hospital for the last three months, waiting for availability of heart for transplantation.

According to the hospital release, at around 3.30 am today Jeevandhaan intimated Yashoda Hospital about a prospective organ donor at Victoria Hospital in Bengaluru.

Pandit Shivrai Baje, 30, had a road accident on February 26; subsequently he was declared brain-dead.

The hospital intimated I G Murthy of Airports Authority of India and the Commissioners of Police of Bengaluru and Hyderabad about the need for swift and smooth airlifting and transportation of the harvested heart.

At about 7 am, a team of six personnel headed by Dr Gokhale left for Victoria Hospital, and after harvesting the heart they returned, without any traffic hassles, in about 11 minutes to HAL Airport, Bengaluru. The distance is 15 km.

"From there, a chartered flight brought them back here in about an hour at 1.13 pm. They took two minutes to reach the hospital from Begumpet Airport, a distance of four-and-a-half km. The traffic police created green channel movement at a short notice for the ambulances at both the places," the hospital release added. — PTI