JOIN USShortage of organ donors amid Covid-19 adds to Karnataka's woes
The cost of the Covid-19 pandemic is immense, and some of those badly affected but seldom discussed are those in need of organ transplants.
“Since the pandemic has kicked in organ donations have stopped in Bengaluru and rest of the state, almost altogether. There are some donations happening in neighbouring states but they are too few and far between. There is a significant number of deaths that are occurring on our waiting list due to want of organ donations,” Dr Rajiv Lochan, a senior consultant surgeon at Aster CMI Hospital, Bengaluru, in a report by The News Minute.
Since most people are staying indoors, road accidents have reduced considerably. However, there are others, particularly those in need of liver transplants, who are stuck in a painful situation.
Acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) patients are some of the worst affected. ACLF patients are those with pre-existing liver problems who develop liver-failure like symptoms.
There are several factors behind this decrease in organ donors. To begin with, hospitals have fewer patients in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) for non-coronavirus related issues. Therefore, there are fewer brain-dead patients who would normally provide the organs to be donated.
Hospitals in general have concentrated their resources on Covid-related action, therefore, there is a smaller availability of experts who could counsel family members towards organ donation.
Transplant coordinator at Jeevasarthakathe, KU Manjula told the source that she witnessed at least eight organs being transplanted from brain-dead bodies, per month. There have been none since April. She claims that there are at least 3,000 people awaiting kidney donations.
Organ transplants include donations by a living person, like a liver lobe or kidney, or from a brain-dead person after all attempts to revive them have failed.
It appears only living donations from kith and kin are taking place right now.
Dr Mohan Kumar, Consultant Urologist and Renal Transplant Surgeon at Apollo Hospitals, Chennai, pointed out to the source how even donations from brain dead people come with their own risk, due to the pandemic.
“Even if a patient is brain dead, we can’t be sure if he or she is Covid-19 negative or not as swab tests have only an efficacy of 60%. Since the donor is a healthy person, we as doctors are at a moral dilemma if to put them at a life threatening risk in this post-pandemic time. So for one there is a shortage of cadaver (brain dead) donors and there is the other issue of doctors unwilling to put healthy patients at risk,” he said.
The result is that several people suffering from kidney failure have to undergo dialysis, since a transplant is not a viable option.