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Organ Transplants
The category of organ transplants deals with the procedure, implementation, risks and benefits of organ transplantation. Such miscellaneous items as adverse effects of medication, hospital monitoring, and transplant care are also addressed here.
546 Questions
Anti- inflammatory drug whose effect is useful in reversing early rejection of organ transplants is?
Prednisolone (corticosteroid)
Where is the most successful liver transplants done at?
In the UK I believe it's King's Hospital in London. With Birmingham QEH a close second.
I was researching this exact question because I am about to undergo a hysterectomy and am considering the removal of my cervix. I have a friend with an incompetent cervix that had one miscarriage and delivered her second baby at 24 weeks. I would love to be able to donate mine- specifically to her if I could!
How long does confusion last after a liver transplant?
Confusion is not a standard side-effect of having a liver transplant, if it is functioning properly. However it may be a side-effect of some post-transplant medication, especially strong painkillers used during the first few days post-op. It can also just be the result of being in a hospital situation; stress combined with little natural daylight, sleep deprivation and continual beeping of various machines can result in an temporarily altered mental state (sometimes referred to as "ITU psychosis").
Should cloning be used to produce transplant organs?
Yes, since it does not rely upon the death of humans to save others. Plus, 'cloned' organs would be (almost) exact copies of the patient's original organ, hence there would be far fewer rejection issues and so less need for (semi-toxic) immunosuppresive drugs post-transplant.
Can you get a spine transplant?
Not currently - bones are not transplanted these days, since they have artificial replacements instead, which are easier to apply than a "transplant" would be. Plus the spine is home to the "spinal column" - a collection of nerves that if damaged will cause paralysis. It's not possible to transplant a spine without the spinal column, which means that the new spinal column would have to be joined "damage free" into the patient. This would actually be impossible to do with no damage occurring to the nerves whatsoever, which would mean that the patient had a high likely hood of waking up fully paralysed. This is why spinal transplants are not performed.
Do kidney donors take medication for life after surgery?
The donors of kidneys to others do not usually have to take medication for life after the surgery. You may have to for a while immediately post-surgery - probably for less than a year though.
What are organ transplant donor requirements in India?
When talking about organ transplant, the person who is giving an organ is called a donor and the one who receives it is called a recipient.
In India, an individual can be a donor irrespective of his/her caste, religion, age, gender or community. The donor needs to be a close (first degree) relative (mother, father, brother, sister, child above 18 years old), or the patient's spouse. There is no age limitation when it comes about being an organ donor. If the organ donation consent from the parents or legal guardians is signed, children (under 18 years old) can be organ donors, too. In each case, the medical suitability of the donor is assessed by a doctor.
However, persons suffering from HIV/AIDS (positive), infection, cancer, bacterial/blood disease or drug use don't meet the criteria of becoming organ donors. When someone has Hepatitis C, he/she can donate organs only to a person who has Hepatitis C as well. Even if this happens very rarely, the same rules are applied for people who have Hepatitis B.
The documents (in original) that the needs to carry in order to get approvals for the transplantation are: donor identification letter (from the Secretariat of the country of residence), recipient identification letter (Secretariat of the country of residence), age declaration of donor (High Court of the country of residence), age declaration of recipient (High Court of the country of residence), relationship proof of the donor and the recipient (High Court of the country of residence), referral letter from the treating hospital of the country of resident, donor's consent (High Court of the country of residence), family photo (both donor and recipient have to be present in the photo), family tree document (authority in the country of residence).
There are two types of donors: Living donors (who can donate a lung, intestine, a part of the liver, a kidney and pancreas) and Deceased donors (who can donate intestinal organs, liver, heart, lungs, kidneys and pancreas).
There are several Indian clinics that perform organ transplants according to the requirements stated above.
Organ Transplant Clinics in India:
*Customize treatment programs according to each patient's specific needs
*Are fully equipped
*Use advanced technology and supplies
*Have a friendly, attentive staff
*Provide a professional, comfortable environment to their patients
*Have a friendly and attentive staff
*Have highly trained certified specialists, which are internationally recognized and have an extended professional background
*Offer flawless medical services
Organ Transplant Clinics in India You Can Visit:
Manipal Hospital, Bangalore, India
Medanta | The Medicity, Heryana, India
Are organ transplants a use of good resources?
They would only be funded if the outcome was expected to be favorable. (Since they are very expensive, there has to be a reasonable expectation of a good outcome.) To be put on the transplant waiting list in the UK, there has to be a 50% or higher expectation of the patient being alive in 5 years. If the probability falls below 50%, the patient is removed from the waiting list.
Why is tissue typing unnecessary in corneal transplant?
In the case of corneal transplants, tissue typing is not needed because cornea do not have their own blood supply. This greatly reduces the chance that immune cells will come in contact with the cornea and recognize it as foreign.
I think it's when the patient needs more than one organ transplanting (within the same operation); lots of patients have a joint heart/lung transplant at the same time, since it's easier than just transplanting the heart.
What are common immunosuppressant drugs given to liver transplant patients?
Prednisone, azathioprine, and tacrolimus are often combined with cyclosporine for better results.
How long can an organ live after it is removed from a dead person?
If it is preserved adequately, they usually remain usable (i.e usable for transplant) for 8 hours once they have been removed from the body. However the time varies depending on what kind of transplant it is; hearts have a shorter usable time outside the body, corneas can be out for a couple of weeks.
When to transplant red fountain grass?
Red fountain grass should ideally be transplanted in the spring after the last frost, as this allows the plant to establish itself during the growing season. Alternatively, it can also be transplanted in the fall, a few weeks before the first frost, to give it time to develop roots before winter. Ensure that the soil is well-draining and provide adequate water to help the grass thrive in its new location. Avoid transplanting during extreme heat or cold, as this can stress the plant.
What is the best time to transplant seed and why?
Rainy season is the best time to transplant seed. During rainy season, there is a lot of humidity, hence the seed sprouts will get required good quality of water for a better growth.
Why is there a waiting list for heart lung liver and kidney transplants?
In very basic terms, there is a lot of demand for organ transplants, but very little supply of organs. Many people require heart/lung/liver/kidney transplants, however the donation rate does not fulfil requirements.
If you were to need a transplant of a rarely transplanted body part (e.g a face), there would be plenty of supply since nobody else also wants them.
Furthermore, for hearts you cannot receive a donation from a living donor. (Clearly). Whereas you can for a kidney and part of a liver/lung. This eases requirements slightly, however there is still not enough organs to go around.
Although there are mechanical ways of maintaining or taking over heart/kidney (and to a certain extent liver and lung) function, the technology currently available does not currently achieve the full function that a donated organ should achieve. Technology still has a way to go, which reduces amounts of people waiting for a transplant very little. In reality, it just prolongs life/quality of life for those on a waiting list for until an organ can be found.
I should also point out that not all of the organs which are donated are actually usable in a transplant; many people who actually begin the process of donation have to be ruled out on something in their medical history (which would make the organ unsafe for the recipient). Also, sometimes it is not until the organs are retrieved from the donor and tested that it becomes clear they are unusable (tumors, scarring, abnormal shape etc...). This effectively means that a greater number of donors are needed than those in need of a transplant, just to find the suitable donors.
Many people are said to support organ donation, but few actually do something to show their support (e.g sign up as an organ donor). Equally, when some of those who have signed up as an organ donor have died, their family can still overrule their requests (and frequently do), which is fair enough, however I think this would happen less frequently if the potential donor discussed their wishes openly with their family. "Organ donation" is one of the few things which people seem not to want to think about, along with "death", "bills" and "homework", but I personally think that until this attitude is challenged, organ donation rates will remain low.
In around 20-30 years it does appear to be that new organs will be grown to specification in a lab then transplanted, however until that time a reliable source of donors will continue to be required - there's still a long way to go.
The main purpose of the actual "waiting list" (actually a computerized database, not so much a list) is to aid matching potential donors to recipients, based on age, blood group, size, how ill they are, time already spent on the list etc...
Why do many kidney transplants fail?
Kidney's require more complex matching than other organs; for kidneys you must match tissue as well as compatible blood type. Kidneys also require higher dosages of immunosuppression than other transplanted organs (they reject easily). Obviously, the transplanted kidney also has to cope with filtering out all the immunosuppression; this puts additional stress on the kidney, which shortens the grafts lifespan.
What is the most common cause of death organ transplant recipient?
I'm assuming you're referring to a time frame which is relatively soon post-transplant, rather than ten or twenty years down the line, since that would involve predicting the future (which I can't do) rather than looking at data (which I can do).
The most common cause of death is not "heart-attack on the operating table", unlike some popular culture would suggest. These days the numbers of people surviving the actual surgery are very good.
The time period with the highest mortality rates occur within the first month of transplant, with the risk being the worst within 10 days of transplant, reducing a little within the 10 days-14 days mark, but becoming much safer it you get to 28 days and beyond.
The main causes of death are things which result in the graft (transplanted organ) not functioning correctly, not including rejection. There is a certain element of randomness as to whether an organ will work correctly upon transplantation; sometimes an organ will appear perfect, be transplanted perfectly within the best-time frame, but not function at all. It is these situations which cannot be controlled for and do pose a risk to the patient's life. If it's a kidney transplant, it's back to dialysis for them. If it's a heart, liver etc.., it gets a bit more tricky; patients can be stabilized for a few days in the hope of another transplant, or the hope that the organ begins to work. However very few patients survive those situations, and it is in these situations where 90% of early mortalities lie.
Besides that risk, blood clots around the transplanted organ pose the next risk to life. A blood clot can block the blood supply to an organ, causing it to fail. Although post-transplant drug regimes are designed to minimize the risk of blood clots, but it does still happen. An equivalent risk to this one is the risk of an infection, which can be difficult (but not impossible) to treat in a heavily-immunosuppressed post-transplant patient.
Organ rejection isn't as huge a cause of death as you may think. Although it does happen to many people, transplant centres have lots of experience at treating it.
If a donor recipient dies can the organ be re used?
Usually the donor's transplanted organ is not transplanted again - it puts a lot of stress on the organ. And depending on how long the donor recipient has been on immuno-suppression for, some of the other organs may not be used (it can affect the kidneys a lot).
Can you have a partial stomach transplant?
Currently, full stomach transplants have been performed (successfully) but as far as I'm aware, "partial" ones have not been performed. This may be because (as strange is it may seem), you can live without your stomach. It is your small intestine which is completely and utterly necessary for food absorption, but with a few eating and dietary changes it is completely possible to live a normal life without your stomach. (Your food would go straight from your oesophagus to your small intestine, so chewing well and eating small amounts would be crucial to prevent feeling nauseous/uncomfortable).
Ways to encourage people to donate their organs?
The best way to collect organs is to make organ donation Per se or common law. Opting out would be the option not the other way around. Unless specifically refused by an individual, organs would be collected upon death without proof of refusal.
It's really a personal preference to become an organ donor. You can always ask a person if they are and if they're not, persuade them otherwise but it may come off as strange. You can also make start a campaign ad stating how many lives are saved by donors and how you should become one to help someone in need. Other than that, making people do things is frowned upon.
