Heart transplant in India
Heart transplant in India
A heart transplant is a surgical procedure that is employed for patients who have end-stage heart failure or severe coronary artery disease. In this procedure, the diseased heart is usually replaced with a healthy heart from decreases donor that is a person who has recently died. This is the last option that the doctor has when all the other treatment procedures have failed.
The heart transplant procedure
It’s quite natural for anyone to feel nervous, emotional and anxious about the surgery. The heart transplant surgery acts like a new pump which pumps the blood and does not cause any behavioral changes in the body. It takes about 4 to 6 hours for the surgery to be completed.
- The heart transplant surgery is usually done in a hospital. The patient is not awake during the surgery and is given an anesthetic.
- The surgeon will cut your breastbone to get access to your heart.
- The medicine is injected into the patient’s body through the intravenous (IV) line in the arm.
- The breathing is supported with help of a ventilator.
- The surgeon will open your chest and connect the heart’s arteries and veins to the heart-lung bypass machine.
- He then removes the diseased heart and connects the arteries and veins from the heart-lung machine to the donor
- The heart transplant is complete when the surgeon closes your breastbone with a wire which stays there forever.
How long is the wait for the heart transplant?
Once the patient is considered suitable for a heart transplant then he or she is put on the waiting list. Once you are on the list, a suitable heart may come along the way within few days, or months or years. Usually, it’s not that easy to find a suitable heart. Only 8 out 10 people receive the heart transplant they require.
What happens after the heart transplant?
The duration of stay in the hospital will depend upon your health condition after the surgery. You will have to have regular health check-ups for a year after the surgery. You will be physically weak after the surgery and so you have to avoid heavy activities such as lifting and pushing until your breastbone is completely healed. It will take about 4 to 6 months to for the breastbone to heal completely.
How will life be after the heart transplant?
After complete recovery from the surgery, you can proceed with your routine life activities. The only care is you should take medicines on regular basis. Your medications include immune-suppressants that help prevent the donor heart from infection. Without this, your body will recognize the donor heart as a foreign body and will try to reject it. Over ¾ of the heart transplant patients live for over 5 years.
Cardiac allograft vasculopathy is a common and serious complication of a heart transplant. It is an aggressive form of atherosclerosis that over months or years can block the heart’s arteries and cause the failure of the donor heart. Over time, your donor heart will fail due to the same reason that caused your old heart to fail. Very few people will be eligible for a second heart transplant surgery.
Despite these risks, heart transplant has a considerably good success rate that has improved over many decades of research. The survival rates are about 85 percent at one year after surgery, with survival rates decreasing by about 3 to 4 % each additional year after surgery because of serious complications.
Who performed the first successful heart transplant surgery?
Panangipalli Venugopal has pioneered heart transplant surgery in India. He was the first surgeon to successfully perform a heart transplant surgery. The count is now standing at 26 successful transplantations. He was the first surgeon in Asia to have performed the implantation of left ventricular assist device lasting for more than 90 days. He was the first one to introduce stem cell therapy in India, by implanting the stem cell for repairing the myocardium. This was then used as an alternative to transplantation.
Best hospitals for heart transplantation in India:
Although India has some of the best medical facilities for heart surgeries, it is not very easy for a patient to decide which is the best hospital for heart transplant surgery. So we provide you with a list of hospitals and the facilities they provide so that you can choose your option.
The following is the list of the best and approved hospitals for heart transplantation in India:
- Heart transplant hospital in Delhi:
Delhi has over 30 healthcare facilities with proven records of good heart patient care and world-class facilities. Some of the trusted health care centers in Delhi are:
- Fortis escort heart institute and research center
- Medanta – the medicity
- Indraprastha Apollo hospital
- Apollo cardiac center
- Max super specialty hospital
- Metro hospital and heart institute.
- Heart transplant hospital in Mumbai:
Mumbai has over 40 cardiology healthcare centers. Some of the trusted healthcare centers in Mumbai are:
- Apollo hospital
- Ambani hospital
- Breach candy hospital
- Tata memorial hospital
- Kakilaben dhurubhai hospital
- Heart transplant hospitals in Chennai:
Chennai has over 25 heart surgery hospitals which perform different kinds of surgeries. Till now, Chennai has done about 142 surgeries. Some of the trusted centers are:
- Rajiv Gandhi government general hospital
- Apollo hospital
- Frontier lifeline hospital
- Global hospital
- Fortis hospital
- Sri Ramachandra medical college and research institute
- Heart transplant hospitals in Bangalore:
There are over 20 cardiology centers in Bangalore. Some of the trusted healthcare centers are:
- Fortis Malar
- Apollo hospital
- Sakra world hospital
- Jayadeva hospital
- Manipal heart foundation
Some of the top surgeons specialized in Heart surgeries are listed below:
- Dr.Naresh Trehan
- Dr.S.K. Sinha
- Dr.Sandeep Attawar
- Dr.Praveen Agarwal
- Dr.Subhash Chandra
- Dr.Balram Airan
- Dr.Satish Javali
- Dr.Sunil Vanzara
- Dr.Suresh Joshi
- Dr.S. Bhattacharya
- Dr.Sunder
- Dr . Arun Visvarajan
- Dr.Rahul Chandola
- Dr.Bashi
- Dr.Paul Ramesh
- Dr.K.R. Balakrishnan
- Dr.Gilbert Joseph
- Dr.Tameem Ahmed
- Dr.Devi Shetty
The cost of heart transplantation in India:
Of all the surgeries performed in India, heart transplantation is the most expensive. The total cost of organ transplant ranges from between INR 20,00,000 to 25,00,000. Even after the surgery, you will have to take special care and regular medications. The medications will cost around INR 30,000 per month. You will have to continue this for a few months after the surgery. In some cases, the air ambulance may be used to bring the donor heart from one location to another. This will cost around 7-10 lakhs.
Benefits and risks of heart transplants:
According to a survey conducted, 87% of the patients who receive heart transplants survive about one year. 73% of the patients may live for about 5 years. Today’s heart transplant recipients live longer after the surgery than those who received the surgery 10 years ago. Many transplants recipients are advised to do swimming, walking and a lot more physical exercises to remain healthy.
The improved life expectancy of heart transplant recipients is due to the immunosuppressive drugs which reduce the body’s ability to reject new organs. Rejection is the major risk of the transplant surgery. Sometimes the immune system might send out antibodies to reject the new organ. In many cases, the rejection may cause extensive damage to the organ.
One should also be aware of the possible side effects of using immunosuppressants. It may elevate cholesterol levels and blood pressure. People taking immunosuppressive drugs are advised to avoid grape juice. This is because the combination of both increases the blood levels and causes nausea, vomiting, and lightheadedness.
The second risk is that of infection. There is every possible way that the new organ may be infected. In that case, people has to immediately rush to the doctor to get it treated. Infection of the new organ may cause:
- Fever
- Redness
- Dizziness
- Swelling
Researches are being carried out to find ways to reduce the risk of infection and rejection. To know more about the heart transplant surgery and the best hospitals and surgeons log on to Free Doctor Helpline or call us at +918010555444.