The young man who got a new lease of life with a heart transplant 10 days ago died at a private hospital in the city on Sunday.
Shinto Kuriakose, 22, son of Kuriakose of Kattupadath Veettil, had been suffering for a long time from dilated cardiomyopathy that necessitated a heart transplant. Dilated cardiomyopathy is a condition in which there is a loss of elasticity in the heart’s functioning, resulting in a lack of blood supply to all organs.
Shinto was admitted to the intensive care unit of Lisie Hospital 40 days before the transplant.
ADVERTISEMENT
Hospital authorities believe the long wait in getting a heart for transplant could have made his recovery difficult, even after a successful surgery.
It was when the family of Kumari Jose, 59, decided to donate her organs that doctors treating Shinto saw a chance for the young man to survive. Kumari Jose was declared brain dead after a haemorrhage on May 16.
Two hospitals in the city worked together for the transplant. Kumari Jose’s heart was taken from the Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences and transplanted into Shinto at Lisie Hospital.
ADVERTISEMENT
Cardiac surgeon Dr. Jose Chacko Periyapuram, who led the operation, told The Hindu that the transplant was risky because the patient had started showing multiple organ problems.
“We wanted to give him even that one per cent chance for survival because he was keen about it. When we were preparing him for the transplant, his condition was much better.”
“Over the days, the bond between the doctor and the patient had grown strong and this probably outweighed our decision to go against his actual condition to receive a new heart,” said Dr. Periyapuram.