Bangalore: With no donors, kidney patients left in the lurch

Bangalore: Thirty-five-year-old Manjunath breathed his last on a hospital bed due to kidney failure. The reason he could not be saved was that he did not find a suitable donor. According to city-based doctors over 80 percent people suffering from kidney failure die as there is an acute shortage of kidney donors.

“Over three lakh people in India suffer from renal failure. However, only 3,500 transplantations take place every year,” said Dr Sankaran Sundar, chief Nephrologist at one of the reputed hospitals in the city. Spreading awareness about the same is crucial in the present scenario, opined many nephrologists and urologists in the city.

The Government of India had passed the Transplant of Human Organ Act 1995, providing legal permission for Cadaveric transplantation which is transplanting the organs of a brain-dead person. But how successful is Cadaveric transplantation in the city? After a person suffering from severe brain damage like cerebral haemorrhage is declared brain-dead by Neurologists, the transplant co-coordinators convince the family for organ donation.

Over 80 percent people suffering from kidney failure die as there is an acute shortage of kidney donors.

Speaking about the Cadaveric transplantation, Dr Ajit Huligol, an urologist said, “The problem lies in two aspects, first, convincing the family that the brain-dead person is equal to being dead, secondly, to persuade them to donate the organs of the person.” Nephrologists also opine that the Cadaveric transplantation is not very success in India, barring states like Tamil Nadu and Gujarat where over 30 percent of the transplant is Cadaveric.

“The government bodies in Tamil Nadu and Gujarat are pro-active and co-ordinate effectively in undertaking the procedures. But in the city no such action has taken place,” added Dr Sundar. Citing his own example he said, “I have conducted just four cadaveric transplantations since 1995 after the act was passed by the government.”

When City Express spoke to Dr G K Ventakesh, Director of Institute of Nephro Urology, he said, “The major reason for the dipping numbers of Cadaveric transplantation in the city is the lack of awareness. Though a person is declared brain-dead by the neurologist, the family does not permit hospitals to transplant organs. In order to make the 1995 act more patient friendly, government has formed a committee to amend the act.”

However, transplanting human organs is not an easy task, as it involves both medical and legal procedures. While speaking about the entire process, a doctor said, “A person donating the organ has to be physically fit. But today over 50 per cent of the people suffering from renal failure are diabetic. Also, every transplant requires clearance by the government.”

In order to promote organ donation, the government provides incentives to the donor’s family like free medical check-up.

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