Another milestone — Live liver transplant done at PGI

Tribune News Service

Naina Mishra

Chandigarh, September 7

The Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) here has accomplished a live liver transplant, bringing renewed hope to patients battling severe liver ailments.

A surgical team of the Department of Surgical Gastroenterology demonstrated their expertise recently by performing a life-saving liver transplant on a patient, where his wife donated a portion of her liver.

The patient, whose identity remains confidential, showed a remarkable recovery and was discharged from the hospital, said Prof Vivek Lal, Director, PGIMER.

Liver transplant is a critical medical procedure that offers a second chance at life to individuals grappling with chronic liver disease, acute liver failure, acute chronic liver failure and, in carefully selected cases, liver cancer.

At present, the waiting list for liver transplants at the PGI has around 40 patients, emphasising the pressing need for more donors and the importance of organ donation. The total cost of a liver transplant at the PGIMER is not even one-fourth of the total expenditure on such surgeries in private centres.

The liver transplant programme at the PGIMER encompasses two main approaches: Deceased Donor Liver Transplant (DDLT) and Live Donor Liver Transplant (LDLT). Under the DDLT method, organs are obtained from brain-dead or heart-beating patients already admitted to the hospital’s Intensive Care Unit (ICU). A rigorous evaluation process by the transplant team ensures that the donor meets specific criteria, such as age below 65, absence of ongoing infections, no presence of cancer, and suitability of the organ for transplant.

The LDLT procedure involves a close relative donating a portion of his or her liver to save a loved one’s life. Typically, one lobe of the liver is donated, leaving the donor with a minimum of 40-45 per cent of the liver, while the recipient receives approximately 55-60 per cent of a normal liver.

The liver has a remarkable ability to regenerate. When a portion of the liver is removed for a live liver donation, both the remaining portion in the donor and the transplanted part in the recipient have the capacity to grow and regenerate to near-normal size over time. This process can take several weeks to a few months.

Remarkably, the Department of Surgical Gastroenterology at the PGIMER also recently achieved another medical milestone by successfully conducting a simultaneous liver-kidney transplant on a 47-year-old male patient. This dual organ transplantation underscores the hospital’s commitment to providing comprehensive care to patients in need.

Renewed hope to patients

Liver transplant is a critical medical procedure that offers a second chance at life to individuals grappling with chronic liver disease, acute liver failure, acute chronic liver failure and, in carefully selected cases, liver cancer.

#Organ doantion #PGI Chandigarh