Kottayam MCH sets benchmark with triple organ transplants

Kottayam Government Medical College Hospital (MCH) has set a new national benchmark in organ transplantation by becoming the first government hospital in India to perform three major organ transplants on the same day and involving a single donor.

According to an official statement, the MCH is also the first government hospital after All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in New Delhi to conduct a lung transplant.

The organs were donated by A.R. Aneesh, 38, from Poozhanad, Kavinpuram, Thiruvananthapuram, who was declared brain-dead at the MCH. A total of eight organs were donated, including a kidney, heart, lung, and two corneas, all of which were transplanted to patients at Kottayam MCH. This procedure marked the eleventh heart transplant performed at the MCH.

The procedure was led by Superintendent T.K. Jayakumar.

Around 50 medical professionals, including doctors, nurses, perfusionists, technicians, and support staff, worked round the clock to carry out the three surgeries, transplanting heart, lungs, and kidney. Three separate teams operated simultaneously in three operation theatres. The organ retrieval began at 6 p.m on Wednesday and the transplantation procedures commenced by 9 p.m., continuing till around 2 a.m on Thursday.

The heart was transplanted into a 59-year-old man from Thrissur, the lung into a 27-year-old woman from Kottayam, and the kidney into a 38-year-old man from Pathanamthitta. Doctors said that all surgeries were successful, but next week remains critical for the patients’ recovery.