Organs, tissues of Ankola resident harvested at K.S. Hegde hospital

Organs and tissues of ‘brain dead’ 49-year-old Subraya Venkataram Bhat from Malgaum in Ankola taluk of Uttara Kannada district, were harvested at the Justice K.S. Hegde Charitable Hospital in Mangaluru on Sunday.

A kidney each was sent for transplantation to patients in the A.J. Institute of Medical Sciences and KMC Hospital, both in Mangaluru, said a release by K.S. Hegde Hospital.

In the release, the hospital said Mr. Bhat was admitted to the hospital with a bleed within the brain. By following standard protocol, Mr. Bhat was declared brain dead on Sunday.

The brother of the patient and their family members agreed to donate the organs, following prolonged counselling by the Jeevasarthakathe team, and efforts of treating physicians U. Sudheendra and G. Suresh, Medical Superintendent Sumalatha Shetty, and transplant coordinator Akshatha Shetty.

A team of doctors coordinated to harvest both the kidneys and the corneas. Owing to unforeseen medical condition for a recipient in the hospital, one kidney could not be transplanted. Then, a kidney each was sent to A.J. Hospital and KMC Hospital respectively.

The corneas was preserved for future transplantation. Both thigh bones (femur) and both arm bones (humerus) were retrieved and stored at Prof. M. Shantharam Shetty Tissue Bank of the hospital at -80°C.

The thigh bones and arm bones will be of use more so for bone cancer patients. Both the Achilles tendons, along with a small piece of bone, were also harvested.

This was second time in the State that cadaver bone harvesting was performed. The donated bones can be stored for over 20 years, the hospital said.