Hitting yet another milestone, the urology team of Osmania General Hospital (OGH) on Monday carried out its 450th kidney transplant surgery (since 1982), the largest number of transplants conducted at a government hospital in the State. Interestingly, all surgeries were conducted free of cost.
The hospital had achieved another landmark in April, 2013, when surgeons conducted the first cadaver transplant on a 24-year-old youth, who received a kidney from a brain-dead donor. The transplant was done under the Jeevandan scheme.
“The condition of the patient who received kidney from a live related donor on Monday is stable. Our kidney transplant programme is three decades old and is highly developed. In fact, recently, we also acquired a state-of-the-art operation theatre and in-patient ward, which has further strengthened our capacity,” said Dr. Manisha Sahay, head of the nephrology department.
OGH was the first hospital in the State to launch a kidney transplant programme in 1982 under senior nephrologist and former Superintendent Dr. A. Gopal Kishan. Since then, all kidney transplants, except for one cadaver transplant, have been done with organs from live donors.
“Surgeries are done under Arogyasri, and patients need not incur any costs. In fact, post-transplantation, even the immunosuppressant drugs are given free of cost to patients under the insurance scheme. Despite the difficulties inherent in a government set-up, we have conducted the largest number of transplants by a government hospital,” Dr. Manisha said.
After discharge from the hospital, organ recipients are kept under strict observation for a year. “It is mandatory for them to come for transplantation follow-up every Monday. The kidney transplant programme has been a boon for PG students, who have an opportunity to learn a lot in a government set-up,” Dr. Manisha added.
