RGGGH Hospital performs 11th cadaveric liver transplant in 15 months

The team from the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital undergoes liver transplant training at Rela Hospital. Photo: File | Photo credit: B. JOTHI RAMALINGAM

In a span of 15 months, the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital (RGGGH) has performed 11 cadaveric liver transplants. With the cadaveric liver transplant programme gaining momentum at the state’s largest government hospital, the health department is keen to make cadaveric liver transplants available in more government hospitals.

Health Minister Gagandeep Singh Bedi said they are encouraging hospitals like Government Rajaji Hospital in Madurai to conduct liver transplantation. Tirunelveli Medical College has also entered into an initial tie-up with a private hospital to conduct liver transplantation.

“We hope that more and more hospitals affiliated to government medical colleges will conduct liver transplantation surgeries for the benefit of the poor. We request the government medical colleges, especially the surgical gastroenterology departments and deans, to establish tie-ups with reputed hospitals for cross-learning. This way, the experience can be extended to other parts of the state and common people will also benefit from it,” he said.

You may recall that Stanley Medical College Hospital was the first government hospital in Tamil Nadu to start liver transplants. In February 2023, RGGGH started cadaveric liver transplants. In the nearly 14-hour operation that began at 6:30 pm on Saturday, doctors performed the 11th^day A 40-year-old woman with Wilson’s disease received a liver transplant within 15 months.

RGGGH Dean E. Theranirajan said that eight cadaveric liver transplants were performed last year and three so far this year. “This time, our team independently retrieved the liver from the donor. Our team was trained in liver transplantation under the MoU signed between the state government and Rela Hospital (2022-2025). We have set up proper infrastructure to promote liver transplantation in the institution. Our aim is to function independently and start pancreas and small intestine transplantation in the near future,” he said. RGGGH has recorded 18 cadaveric liver transplants so far this year while also performing 26 kidney transplants.

K. Prem Kumar, director of the Institute of Hepatobiliary Sciences at Lahore General Hospital, said training is an ongoing process. “Before we start performing transplants, our doctors, nurses and medical staff, such as those from the microbiology and biochemistry departments, undergo extensive training,” he said.

Liver transplant requires teamwork and coordination, which has been implemented at the institute, added C. Sugumar, director, Institute of Surgical Gastroenterology and Liver Transplantation, RGGGH. “We have the required infrastructure. We have set up a WhatsApp group with other departments related to liver transplantation and the Rela hospital team. Once we get an alert for brain death recognition, we take all necessary steps, including asking patients on the priority list to come for reassessment,” he said.

After the transplant, doctors meet every day to discuss the patient’s condition and treatment options.