The 100th case of brain-dead donor for organ transplantation at Viet Duc University Hospital

26/04/2023 07:36

(Dan Tri) – A 32-year-old man from Bac Giang is the 100th brain-dead donor in Viet Duc University Hospital. By 100 brain-dead donors, the hospital has transplanted 50 hearts, 157 kidneys, 6 lungs…

On March 23, Viet Duc University Hospital informed about the 100th case of brain-dead donor in the hospital.

This was a 32-year-old man resident in Bac Giang. In the early morning of March 6, Mr. D.M.K was taken to Viet Duc University Hospital for emergency care in a very serious condition with deep coma (4 points by Glasgow Score) after a self-inflicted motorbike accident.

 

After a day hospitalized for intensive care, even though the doctors and nurses tried their best to find the last chance to save his live, but the miracle did not come to the family. Brain death assessment committee was established, 3 times of test results were consistent with the brain dead patient. The assessment committee and Board of Directors of Viet Duc University Hospital announced that Mr.D.M.K brain was dead.

For a brain-dead patient, the meeting of Viet Duc Hospital’s Organ Transplantation Coordinating and Consulting Unit and the patient’s wife and his brother was took place.

 

The patient’s family discussed and agreed to donate tissues and organs. The patient’s wife is the one who signed the voluntary application to donate her husband’s tissues and organs to revive new lives.

 

Prof. Tran Binh Giang, MD, PhD, Director of Viet Duc University Hospital, said that before removing the tissue and organs from donors, the medical team and staff had a ceremony of silence and gratitude to the donor.

“The important surgery was conducted at around 2:30 p.m. on March 7. The patient donated his heart, liver, 2 kidneys, 4 blood vessels, 14 tendons, and 2 cartilage. From this donor, the hospital provided a heart transplant for a 53-year-old woman in Bac Giang with end-stage heart failure; a liver transplant for a 33-year-old man in Ninh Binh with biliary cysts; a kidney transplant for a 42-year-old man in Hai Phong with end-stage chronic renal failure; transplant the remaining 1 kidney for a 48-year-old male patient in Hai Phong”, said Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Quang Nghia, MD, PhD, Director of the Organ Transplantation Center (Viet Duc Hospital).

 

In Vietnam, the demand for organ transplants is huge. However, to date, the whole country has only nearly 150 brain-dead donors.

“A lot of patients with chronic organ failure, waiting tiredly, could not survive. Before that, we received a case where a family member who agreed to donate an organ from their son with brain-dead due to traffic accident, because in that family, the donor’s brother who had been waiting for a lung transplant. Unfortunately, after 5 months awaiting without hopes, he passed away because his was not donated the organ” said Prof. Tran Binh Giang.

 

Prof. Giang also explained clearly that many people still do not fully understand the concept of brain death. “The family wondered, why the doctors say the child was dead when he/she was still breathing and the heart was still beating. The diagnosis of brain death is both a legal and medical ethic aspect.

Determination of brain death is normally done by a committee including many experts in various fields, based on scientific evidence showed on modern equipment. One confirmed brain death is irreversible function of body. That body, even though the heart is still beating by medicines for resuscitation and treatment purpose, the patient on an artificial life support machine/medicien no longer has any brain functions. This means they will not regain consciousness or be able to breathe without support .Prof. Giang, explained.

 

According to the Director of Viet Duc Hospital, this is the 100th case of donation – multi-tissues and organs, the 100th organ of Viet Duc University Hospital is also the case that has donated the most tissues and organs ever.

“We would like to express our deep gratitude on behalf the patients who received organs, also our doctors, medical staff doing the organ donation work to the families of those who donated their organs for revive the life. This is a human activity that needs to be spreading,” said Prof. Giang.

 

From 100 brain-dead organ donation cases, Viet Duc Hospital has performed 50 heart transplants, 83 liver transplants, 157 kidney transplants, 6 lung transplants…

“We hope people will be more and more open mind to organ donation concept. One life unfortunately stops, the source of donated organs will help revive many new lives. To date, about 170,000 Vietnamese people have registered. It hopes that these human activity will be spreading more and more, so that more and more ill people can be revived” Professor Giang said.