Liver surgery saves life and sets record

7-mth-old Sivojit youngest to have a liver transplant

"The high bilirubin made him lethargic and he refused to feed,” says Dr Subhash Gupta, senior consultant, liver transplant, Apollo Hospital, who performed the surgery."

LITTLE Sivojit Paul was born with a liver disorder less than a year ago. Last month, with a little help from his parents and a lot from doctors at Apollo Hospital in Delhi, he became the youngest patient in India to have undergone a successful liver transplant.

Sivojit was born with a liver disorder called biliary atresia, in which there is no connection between the liver and the intestine and the bile cannot be excreted.

Initially, a surgery was performed at Kolkata to join the liver and the intestine.

After the surgery, the babys condition started deteriorating. He became sick with rising bilirubin and stopped gaining weight.

The doctors at Kolkata referred him to Indraprastha Apollo Hospital, Delhi, where the seven- month- old was operated upon. While both parents offered a part of their livers for the surgery, it was Sivojits father Indrajit, a Kolkata- based advocate, who was chosen as the suitable donor after primary tests.

Sivojit underwent a successful liver transplant on September 12. Today, the baby looks healthy and happy.

The doctors at Apollo said there were few chances of health problems recurring in the future, but they did not rule out chances of infection.

At a press conference held on Wednesday, Dr Anupam Sibal, group medical director and senior paediatric gastroenterologist, Apollo Hospital, said: “ Sivojit was brought to the hospital with a deteriorating condition when he was six months old. His case was a major challenge because of his age and deteriorating health. A liver transplant is ideally performed only after the child crosses the age of one since the risks are very high at such a tender age.” Biliary atresia is the most common reason behind end- stage liver failure in babies. It affects one in 12,000 7 babies across the world.

“ Sivojit was a high- risk baby because his general condition was weak and the blood vessels were very tiny. The high bilirubin made him lethargic and he refused to feed,” says Dr Subhash Gupta, senior consultant, liver transplant, Apollo Hospital, who performed the surgery. He was assisted by a team of four doctors — Nishant Wadhwa, Nameet Jairath, Neerav Goyal and Vivek Vij.

Moon Moon, Sivojits mother was glad they decided to bring him to Delhi. “ We were at our wits end when we came to know of Sivojits condition.

It seems like a miracle he has survived. It was good we brought him here because the city has good healthcare facilities,” she said.

A large number of children in India suffer from liver diseases and many require transplants. But there is a lack of conceptual data. The first successful paediatric liver transplant was performed in India in 1998. Eight successful transplants have been performed at the Apollo Hospital in Delhi.

Via: http://mailtoday.in