An offer to remove the organs of a 48-year-old dengue patient who had been deemed brain dead was turned down by a team from the state organ donation program Jeevandan in Hyderabad. The patient, a resident of Rangareddy, had suffered dengue shock syndrome and was in critical condition after being placed on a ventilator for four days at a private hospital. Physicians notified the patient’s relatives of the circumstance after confirming brain death. The Jeevandan team clarified that organ donation was not practical in this particular situation, despite the family’s indicated wish to donate his organs, which included doctors.
Medical guidelines that prohibit organ harvesting from patients with viral diseases such as dengue are the reason behind the current scenario, according to a hospital official. The patient’s condition, being impacted by a serious infectious disease, made his organs unfit for donation. This was not the hospital’s first experience with this kind of situation; a middle-aged male patient was admitted to Osmania General Hospital (OGH) lately with a respiratory ailment in a similar event. Even though the patient was deemed brain dead, it was discovered that they had active TB, which further eliminated the possibility of organ donation because immunocompromised or infected patient organs cannot be used for transplantation.
Senior transplant coordinator for Jeevandan at OGH, Dr. Bhanu Chandra, stressed that patients with viral infections like dengue, malaria, or tuberculosis cannot have their organs taken because their condition jeopardizes the quality and safety of the organs for transplant. These donations are not accepted because of the high risk of disease transmission to the receiver of the organ due to the presence of illnesses like dengue or tuberculosis.
Strict medical standards are in place to guarantee the safety and viability of donor organs, making organ donation a delicate and heavily regulated procedure. Patients must be clear of illnesses and infections that could put the recipient of an organ transplant in danger. This example emphasizes the difficulties and constraints that organ donation programs have, particularly when dealing with highly contagious diseases. It also emphasizes the importance of a comprehensive medical evaluation prior to organ harvesting for transplantation.
SOURCE :
TIMES OF INDIA
