Doctors at KIMS Hyderabad perform breathing lung transplant

Transplant surgeons at Krishna Institute of Medical Sciences (KIMS), Secunderabad, have conducted a ‘breathing lung transplant’ on a middle-aged patient who was suffering from end-stage lung disease and was waiting for a donor lung since August.

According to a press release, breathing lung transplant involves preserving the functions of donor lungs while they are being transported. Essentially it involves the donor lungs to be transported in a high-end container to keep them healthy by keeping them warm and nourished by blood and oxygen.

“Only a select few transplant institutions in



the United States, Canada, and Austria take this approach to enhance the outcomes of lung transplants,” Dr Sandeep Attawar said. The transplant teams utilised an organ conditioning system manufactured by Swedish medical technology company XVIVO.

Dr Vijil Rahulan, Chief, Transplant Pulmonology said, “such state of the art systems improve organ function by perfusing donor organ with nutrient solutions and antibiotics to reduce injury to lung from cold ischemic transport in an icebox. It is also used to condition the lung with growth factors to enhance lung function and to reduce edema of the lung”.