Lung Transplantation

Q: Who can donate Heart and Lungs?

A: Heart and Lung can be donated by the family whose loved one is Brain Dead.

Q: What is the meaning of Brain Dead?

Suppose a young couple is driving to a Hill station for a holiday. They are travelling on a motor cycle. Unfortunately the bike skids and the couple have a fall. The head of the boy is severely injured and he is rushed to a Government Hospital. The Neurosurgical team tries their best to save his life, by operating on the brain, but sadly he becomes Brain Dead.

Although his heart is beating, lungs are oxygenating, liver is metabolizing, and the kidneys are making good urine, but he is dead.

His Heart will soon stop beating. It may take 2 hours or 72 hours, but the heart will stop beating. There is no individual in the world that is walking around with a dead brain.

Accidents is not the only way a person can become brain dead. There are many reasons by which a person can become brain dead; like intra cranial hemorrhage, over dose of recreations drugs and alcohol, infections of the brain, tumors of the brain and others.

After the family has understood that their loved one is really dead, they may be approached by the Government or Frontier Life Line Hospital Transplantation Coordinator with the request to Donate Organs. The Organs that can be donated are: Heart, Lungs, Liver, Kidneys, Pancreas, Small intestines.

Many spouses or parents find meaning in facing the death of their loved one by donating their loved one’s organs. These donated organs will live in different bodies for years to come. Many lives can be saved by these donations.

Who needs a Lungs Transplantation?

Patients who have end stage Lung Disease (Lung Failure), that is, patients who require oxygen therapy every day. These are the patients who will benefit most from Lung Transplantation which is the only definitive treatment for them.

There are three common diseases which lead to end stage lung disease i.e. Lung Failure.

They are:

Interstial Lung Disease. The end stage of the lung disease is reached when the patient requires any amount of oxygen at rest or greater than 4 liters on walking.
Any patient with Interstitial Lung Disease needs Lung Transplantation when he desaturates below 88% on six minute walk test and he has radiological and/or histological evidence of Interstitial Lung Disease.
Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease.
Idiopathic Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension (Primary Pulmonary Hypertension)

International Society of Heart and Lungs Transplantation has published Guidelines in 2006, which are disease specific. They give guidelines when to refer the patient for Lung Transplantation and when to perform the transplant for the patient.

For more information and questions please contact transplant@frontierlifeline.com or call 98400 44424