Iraqi gets Indias first single lung transplant

CHENNAI: For Karmeen Hameed Ameen from Iraq, it was a new lease of ‘prana’, truly a fresh breath of air, as specialists at Global Hospital successfully completed India’s first single lung transplantation on him.Kareem, a 33-year-old from Baghdad, was diagnosed with interstitial lung disease with bulla - an end-stage lung condition, which forced him on to a 24-hour oxygen support. He had been suffering from this condition for more than two years.Dr N Madhu Sankar, Chief Cardiothoracic Surgeon, who headed the team of specialists at Global Hospital said, “The condition  primarily is lung disorder. However, as both lungs were damaged, the heart was also failing due to the strain on it. The patient is oxygen-dependent. His oxygen saturation was around 80 per cent compared to 100 per cent in normal cases.”On December 16, he underwent a four-hour surgery and 20 days after the post-operative period, he is no longer dependant on oxygen support, added Sankar. For his lifetime, Kareem will have to be in immune suppressive therapy.  The donor was an 18-year-old, who had a fatal fall and was declared brain dead. There are 25 more patients waiting for lung transplant at Global Hospital, said Dr Madhu.A lung transplant, which costs between Rs 3 and 4 lakh, has a success rate of  80 per cent in the first year and 60% in the next five years.