46-year-old man successfully undergoes a heart transplant, gets a second chance at life

PUNE: A 46-year-old resident of Navi Mumbai, Mr. Rajesh, successfully underwent a heart transplant surgery at Apollo Hospitals Navi Mumbai, the leading multi-specialty quaternary care hospital accredited by JCI. He received the heart from a 52-year-old woman, a deceased donor.  The patient, with severe heart failure, had been on the heart transplant waiting list for six months and admitted around eight times with intractable heart failure during this period. While his life was saved each time, a heart transplant was the only hope and with no organ available in Mumbai, he decided to go to Chennai for a heart transplant. He had been admitted to a hospital in Chennai for four weeks when he was informed about a donor is available in Mumbai and he flew back to Mumbai within four hours for the transplant surgery at Apollo Hospitals Navi Mumbai. The organ matched perfectly and the transplant surgery was successfully completed in four hours, with the patient off the ventilator within 24 hours.

Dr Sanjeev Jadhav, Heart & Lung Transplant Surgeon, at Apollo Hospitals, Navi Mumbai said, “When the patient, Mr. Rajesh came to Apollo Hospitals, he had been suffering from a dilated heart (dilated cardiomyopathy) functioning at only 20% ejection fraction since the last five to six years. That meant his heart was pumping only one-fifth of the blood out of the left ventricle (the main pumping chamber) every time it beats. Anything less than 35% is a high risk of developing a dangerous arrhythmia and going into heart failure. An automated cardioverter-defibrillator pacemaker had been implanted to give an electrical stimulus to the heart and bring it back to a normal rhythm in case of any change. He also had a history of severe cardiac failure with a lung infection and fluid collection in the lung lining (pleural effusion) last year and was suspected to have contracted COVID-19 infection.”

When the patient came to Dr. Jadhav at Apollo Hospitals Navi Mumbai, he was treated for his heart failure and after evaluation, he was put on a heart transplant waiting list. Dr. Jadhav added, “However, he did not get a matching heart for six months, during which time he was admitted multiple times with intractable heart failure. We saved him each time, but with time running out, the patient decided to go to Chennai for the transplant. Even in Chennai, there was no matching organ available for four weeks and just when he was losing hope, a donor’s heart became available in Mumbai. He was informed and he flew back immediately for the transplant surgery. The organ matched and we performed transplant surgery that took around four hours. It was a complete success. He was taken off the ventilator and was able to breathe on his own within 24 hours.”

Mr. Rajesh, the patient was grateful for the organ and the donor’s family. On his new lease on life, he said, “I had almost lost hope before coming to Apollo Hospitals. The doctors and the team here gave me hope and saved my life multiple times when I went into heart failure. The positive attitude of Dr. Sanjeev Jadhav and the entire team as they stood like a pillar for me kept me going through my treatment and wait for the donor organ. I am thankful to the hospital, the doctors, and the donor’s family for giving me a new lease of life. I look forward to returning to my family and normal life soon.”

Mr. Santosh Marathe, COO & Unit Head, Apollo Hospitals, Navi Mumbai, said, “The case highlights how organ donation can save lives, and at Apollo Hospitals, our endeavor is to promote and spread awareness about the need for organ donation. Through organ donation, we can serve society even after death. Apollo Hospitals Navi Mumbai is recognized as one of the most advanced transplant centers in Western India with successful liver, kidney, heart, and bone marrow transplants recorded. The unit has also handled multiple international transplant cases and undertaken liver transplants in other affiliated hospitals in Maharashtra. The Apollo Hospitals’ organ transplant team is known for some of the finest transplant surgeons in the country with years of experience who are backed by specialists and a support staff that includes transplant coordinators, social workers, psychiatrists, and anesthesiologists.”

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March 29, 2021