In a landmark medical achievement, a 13-year-old girl received a new lease on life after a successful paediatric heart transplant at Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST) in Kerala. This five-hour operation was executed by a dedicated team of doctors, offering hope to many in similar dire circumstances.

The young patient, who had been on a ventilator due to severe cardiomyopathy, underwent the complex Orthotopic Heart Transplantation. Such operations are rare and costly, particularly for children, due to the limited availability of paediatric hearts. The successful procedure places SCTIMST among the select group of government hospitals providing accessible heart transplant services.

SCTIMST, an autonomous institute under the Department of Science and Technology (DST), received its heart transplant license last year with the support of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), which helped establish its comprehensive heart failure program. The hospital's search for a donor was prompted by the critical condition of the girl from Chavakkad, Thrissur, who had been confined to the ICU for the past two months.

The donor heart came from a 47-year-old school teacher who was declared brain dead at KIMS HEALTH hospital following a severe brain haemorrhage caused by a ruptured intracranial aneurysm. The Kerala State Organ and Tissue Transplant Organization (K-SOTTO) allocated the heart to SCTIMST in line with the Government of Kerala’s organ allocation policy.

The transplant team, led by Dr. Baiju S Dharan, Dr. Vivek V Pillai, Dr. Soumya Remanan, Dr. Renjith S, and Dr. Veena Vasudev from the Department of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery, and supported by Dr. Harikrishnan S, Dr. Krishnamoorthy K M, Dr. Deepa S Kumar, Dr. Arun Gopalakrishnan, and Dr. Jyothi Vijay from the Department of Cardiology, and Dr. Shrinivas V G from the Department of Cardiac Anaesthesia, performed the operation. The team also included transplant coordinator Ms. Beena Pillai, senior residents, and staff from the Division of Perfusion Technology, Department of Transfusion Medicine, nursing, technical, transport, security, and biomedical technology wings.

The Kerala Police arranged a green corridor to facilitate the swift transport of the donor organ, ensuring the transplant could proceed without delay.

This successful transplant highlights SCTIMST's growing capabilities and commitment to making life-saving treatments more accessible to all, marking a significant step forward in paediatric cardiac care in India.