VISAKHAPATNAM: Vani did not think twice when told that her father need to undergo a liver transplantation to win his battle against decompensated cirrhosis and related ailments.
“Besides liver failure with portal hypertension, he was also suffering from associated jaundice and accumulation of fluid in the abdomen. I am happy that I could save my father,” the 21-year-old woman said after the surgery at the Care Hospital here.
Doctors attending to her father M Neelakanteswera Rao, 52, said nine to 10 litres of fluid had to be drained from his abdomen per session in a week, accounting for 20 to 25 sessions during the pre-operative period. The functioning of his kidneys was also affected, they said, adding that the solution was to provide him with a healthy liver. Vani donated half of her liver to save her father.
A team comprising Dr Mohammad Nayeem, Dr Ravishankar Kinjarapu and Dr Rajkumar, harvested the liver from Vani. The hospital said two teams were involved in the 14-hour process of harvesting and transplanting the organ.
Vani released from hospital after six days
Vani was released from the hospital after six days. Dr Nayeem said she has been doing well. “Live liver transplantation is a complex surgery through which 50% to 60% of the organ is harvested from the donor, and implanted in the recipient. We decided against waiting for a cadaver liver transplant since the patient was critically ill required it at the earliest,” the doctor said, adding that Rao could return to his normal life in six weeks.
The donor and recipient’s liver would grow to 90% of the normal size in three to four weeks. “The risk to donors has decreased with expert teams of surgeons, advanced technology and better critical care during perioperative period,” Dr Kinjarapu said. An average of 1,00,000 Indians suffer from liver ailments and delayed diagnosis leads to the death of 15% to 20%.