Amit Pant
Mumbai: Global Hospital Mumbai announces their Heart and Lung Transplant Program for the benefits of patients suffering from critical heart & lung diseases by initiating a network of dedicated heart failure clinics In Mumbai, Pune, Surat, Delhi, etc.
The focus of the program is to stabilize patients, as they await transplantation and provide medically the most suitable options for patients who are not transplant candidates. The program has developed a customized approach towards treating congestive heart failure, that is reducing hospital admissions, improving the quality of life for patients and lowering mortality rates. The program is rooted in a rounded medical approach that emphasizes intensive education and lifestyle counselling.
Gleneagles Global Hospital’s Integrated Heart and Lung Transplant Program has successfully completed three transplants in Mumbai and the flagship program nationally has performed 63 heart, 74 lungs and combined 16 heart and lung transplants, which is the highest in the country in the past two and a half years.
Dr. Sandeep Attawar, Director and Chair of the Heart and Lung Program, Gleneagles Global Hospitals said “In India preservation of heart and lungs in a deceased patient is quite challenging. The heart and the lungs are the first organs to suffer damage in a brain-dead person if they are not managed well. It requires a high level of monitoring, medication, and expertise. As a result, in every 10 donations, liver or kidneys may be viable in 7 or 8 cases, because they tend to be fairly well preserved. Unfortunately, the lungs are viable 1 or 2 times out of 10 donations. Lungs tend to be easily damaged either due to poor ventilator support or improper care of the lung or due to unavailability of the right expertise or incorrect antibiotics used. When a lung is considered for transplantation, there has to be 8 or 10 parameters that have to be met before deeming its suitability for a recipient.”
Speaking on this occasion Dr. Vivek Talaulikar, CEO- Global Hospital, Mumbai said, “With the introduction of the Heart and Lung transplant program at Global Hospital, Mumbai we can help create awareness about organ donation, help save precious lives and families. Identify the patients with heart failure and providing proper guidance for treatment of heart and lung failure, proper selection of patients with heart failure for Heart Transplant surgery.”
“I would also, like to compliment the efforts taken by the ZTCC and appreciate the hospitals in Maharashtra who have taken the lead in ensuring awareness towards organ donation.” Adds Dr. Talaulikar.
Heart and Lung transplant recipients are living longer than ever before, thanks to rapid advances in technology, medications and surgical procedures. With advances in surgical techniques and immunosuppressive drugs, more than 80% of heart, recipients survive more than 3 years after the operation. Lung transplantation is a relatively new procedure that continues to see improvement. Currently, more than 65% of lung recipients survive at least 3 years after a transplant. The success rate of our program is at 85% and this has been published in the International Society for Heart & Lung Transplantation (ISHLT), bringing our Heart and Lung transplant program racing ahead of many of its world competitors.
The patient underwent successful heart & lung transplant recipients from Maharashtra attended the conference and shared their story. All of them thanked and expressed gratitude to the donors and their family, program and the doctors who gave them a new lease of life.
Speaking on this occasion Dr. K. Ravindranath, Chairman of Gleneagles Global Hospitals group expressed great satisfaction in the progress of the program and its stability in Mumbai. He stated, therefore, “I would like to compliment the pioneering efforts by the clinical team and thank them for pursuing this challenging work, bringing a multi-disciplinary team together and training them to work on this singular goal. I am sure this program in Mumbai will offer a safe and caring atmosphere for all patients like all our other organ transplant programs running for decades across India.”
