Traffic departments in Aurangabad and Mumbai created a green corridor to transport a harvested heart of a man for an emergency transplant surgery on a 38-year-old patient at a hospital in suburban Mulund.
The heart, that set out its journey from Aurangabad, reached the operation theatre in Fortis Hospital in one hour twenty minutes.
The recipient, a resident of Thane, had been suffering from viral myocarditis and intractable arrhythmia since the past two months and a heart transplant was the only hope of survival for him, doctors said.
Tuesday’s heart transplant surgery, twentieth for this hospital, became possible after a 32-year-old male patient was declared brain-dead at United Ciigma Hospital in Aurangabad following a road accident that had caused severe head injuries to him.
“As soon as the consent was in place, the airport and traffic authorities in Aurangabad and Mumbai came together, swiftly laying out the roadmap and the flight map,” a statement from the hospital said.
The donor heart left Ciigma Hospital at 6.35 AM and reached Aurangabad airport at 6.42 AM. It was then taken into a commercial flight that took off at 6.52 AM, landing at Mumbai Airport at 7.27 AM, immediately heading out to the ambulance. "The recipient registered for a heart just ten days ago.
The city's 20th heart transplant since last year became possible only because of the Aurangabad family," said Dr Anvay Mulay, chief of cardiac transplant team at Fortis Hospital.
"The real heroes are the families who look beyond traditional and religious beliefs and consent to donate organs of their kin," he said.
The green corridor chalked from the airport to Military Road–Santacruz-Chembur Link Road-Chheda Nagar to Eastern Express Highway-Airoli Junction helped the heart reach Fortis Hospital at 7.54 AM and was immediately brought into the operation theatre at 7.55 AM, it said.
“We have concluded the surgery and the next 48-72 hours will be critical. The patient will be monitored round the clock,” Dr Anvay Mulay, Chief of Cardiac Transplant Team said.
