Is Kerala Ready for Organ Transplantations?

Organ donation, as the name indicates is the donation of healthy

organs from a living or dead donor to a living recipient. Both internal

and external organs can be donated. Internal organs that can be

donated include Kidneys, Heart, Liver, Pancreas, Intestines, and Lungs.

External organs that can be donated include eyes (cornea), skin, bone

and bone marrow. All you need to have for organ donation is good

health and a mind to donate your organs.

Willingness to donate organs isn’t enough for a successful organ

donation. It would be incomplete without proper facilities and medical

aid for transplantation. Hospitals with talented doctors and well

developed equipments and facilities can only successfully deal with

organ transplantations. Be an organ donor and Spread life!

Kerala in Organ Transplantation

Kerala is often compared to the Western world for its health statistics.

Many are unaware of the fact regarding the organ donation and

transplantation. Hospitals, NGO’s, and many organizations have come

forward to spread the awareness. One such active organization is

Kerala Network for Organ Sharing (KNOS), which promotes deceased

organ transplantation. We can get detail information on approved

hospitals for organ transplantation in Kerala from their website

knos.org.in.

Transplanting Liver

Liver is an imperative internal human organ. Vital body functions such

as digestion, energy storing, detoxification, synthesis of protein, etc are

performed by liver. A person cannot survive with a damaged liver. In

cases of chronic liver failure, doctors suggest for liver transplantation.

Liver transplantation can be done either from a dead person or from a

living person to the patient. Alcohol consumption, smoking, overdose

of certain medicines, hepatitis, and obesity are some of the major

causes of acute liver failure.

There are approved hospitals for Liver Transplantation in Kerala.

Though liver transplanting is not an easy procedure, the survival rate of

patients undergone liver transplant in Kerala has improved over the

past few years.

Cardiac Transplantation

Around 3,500 heart transplantations are carried out around globe every

year. First heart transplant in Kerala was done in the year 2003, making

it the third Indian State to achieve this triumph. Grafting of heart can be

only done from a recently dead donor. The donor must be declared

brain dead. Heart transplantation is done when it cannot pump enough

blood for body. High blood pressure, diabetes and acute coronary

artery diseases can result in heart failure.

Though there 20 approved hospitals that performed heart

transplantation in Kerala, there are more deaths due to unavailability of

organs. Lack of will to donate organ has resulted in 500,000 deaths

while waiting for organ transplant. Therefore a massive awareness

among people regarding organ donation is to be spread.

Renal Failure

It is estimated that every five minutes, a person in India die of kidney

failure. There are nearly 1, 75,000 patients awaiting kidney transplant

but hardly 5,000 kidneys are available. End stage kidney disease can be

treated only be two ways – Kidney transplantation or through lifelong

dialysis. Kidney transplantation can help the patient lead a normal life

under proper medication Kidney transplant in Kerala can be compared

to international standards. Quality treatment is provided by multi-

specialty hospitals such as MIMS Hospital, Calicut, and giving light to

many lives.

We have better treatments and doctors these days, but organs for

transplantation are still a question mark before us. Believe!! Donating

organs can create wonders. You can prove that there is life after death

by donating organs. Help someone to live after your death.