Hyderabad: The first-ever kidney transplant of a patient whose blood group did not match with the donor`s was performed here using immuno absorption technique, doctors said Friday.
Known as `ABO incompatible kidney transplantation`, this was the first-ever operation in the country using the novel technique.
Shortage of cadaver donors or non-compatibility of living donors is a major issue in the country, and out of an estimated two to three lakh patients suffering from kidney failure, only about 3,000 go through kidney transplantation.
Now, an additional 1,500 live donor kidney transplants could be performed through this procedure each year in the country marking a new chapter in treating renal failure, according to doctors.
A team of doctors at Kamineni Super Speciality Hospital comprising Dr Kamal Kiran, a nephrologist and Dr Srinivas Guttha, a transplant surgeon, successfully transplanted the kidney of an A+ donor (father) to an O+ patient (son) which was earlier considered impossible.
Non-matching blood groups are called ABO incompatible.
The operation was performed on a Pune-based patient last month, Dr B Shashidhar Reddy of Kamineni Hospitals told reporters on Friday.
Dr Kamal Kiran said an ABO incompatible transplantation is the best option for a patient who has no compatible donors in the family. Though this kind of transplant costs Rs 8 lakh compared to Rs 3 lakh for an ABO-matched transplant, waiting on the cadaver list costs Rs 4 lakh every year. With this, the dream of a kidney transplant, regardless of matching, has become a reality.
PTI
