Written By: Pavitra Sampath | Updated : November 14, 2015 11:43 AM IST
30-year-old Ponnar has been suffering from breathlessness and bouts of jaundice for the past eight years and has finally found some relief from his tedious illness. The man recently received a new liver and heart in a complex operation conducted in Chennai after doctors harvested the organs from a brain dead donor. What makes this surgery one for the record books is the fact that both the organs were simultaneously transplanted while being connected to each other. You may also like to read -- everything you need to know about a heart transplant.
Ponnar was brought to Apollo Hospitals in March, this year, with symptoms of liver and heart failure. Caused due to high blood pressure in the blood vessel that connects the heart and liver, this condition can be life threatening if not treated. It took the doctors six months to find an appropriate donor whose liver and heart matched with Ponnar.
Ponnar was an exceptional student and has completed his masters in engineering. But since the age of 22, he started noticing swelling in his abdomen, breathlessness and yellowing of his skin. Later diagnosed with cirrhosis of the liver and eventually liver failure, Ponnar was advised to undergo a liver transplant.
But, the solution to Ponnar's trouble was not that simple. Soon doctors found that the young lad was suffering from a congenital condition called Ebstein's anomaly (where the right side of the heart does not form normally) which was the real cause for his liver failure.
After this diagnosis Ponnar was left with no other option than to undergo a combined heart and liver transplant. He was informed that the procedure would involve surgery of his thoracic cavity and abdominal cavity, making it an extremely risky surgery. (Read: Everything you need to now about organ donation)
In a statement to the Times Of India, Dr Paul Ramesh, consultant cardiothoracic surgeon, Apollo Hospitals said, ' With the heart not functioning in an efficient manner, there was high pressure on the liver, causing destruction of the liver cells leading to jaundice and cirrhosis.'
But why did the doctors think that opting for this risky surgery was the best option? Well, according to reports doctors feared that if they did the transplants separately toxins would accumulate in the man's liver which would again affect the heart.
Incidentally, Ponnar waited from April 2015 to October 2015 for a suitable donor and underwent a combined heart and liver transplant on October 14th 2015. He recovered well after the surgery and was discharged within a week after the procedure.
Image source: Shutterstock
