Young Hearts That Beat Again

Over the past month, 12 children with acute heart problems, who were in the waitlist for organ transplantation, got a fresh lease of life after receiving the organ from brain-dead/deceased donors.

The children at Tehran’s Shahid Rajaei hospital were in critical condition and on the verge of losing their lives.

“With the transplant surgeries there are now no young heart patients in emergency conditions and in need of organs at the hospital,” said Dr. Mohammad Mahdavi, member of Iran’s Organ Transplant Society (OTS) and a heart surgeon, IRNA reported.

He added that the rate of organ donation has seen a rise in recent months thanks to programs by the Health Ministry and the OTS to raise public awareness about the issue.

Reports by the OTS indicate that 26,000 patients are currently on the waitlist for organ transplant, of which around 10 lose their lives per day.

This is while the organs of half the brain-dead patients in hospitals is said to be sufficient for those on the waitlist.

In Iran, people can apply for and receive organ donation cards to show their acceptance to donate organs after death. The card however has no legal value and the families’ approval is still required before transplant.

Over 1.4 million people have voluntary organ donation cards in Iran. On average, 700 organ donations (nine per million people) are made annually according to official statistics.

Applicants for voluntary organ donation cards can refer to the website www.ehda.center for more information.

Between 5,000 and 8,000 people are declared brain-dead in Iran every year, while the organs of only 665 such patients are donated.

At least 2,500-4,000 organ transplants are needed annually. Nearly 25,000 people suffer from organ failure while 1,000-3,000 Iranians register as organ donors every month.

The Shahid Rajaei Cardiovascular Medical and Research Center established in 1972, is one of the largest heart hospitals in Asia. Designed in the form of the alphabet H (to symbolize the heart) in an area of 110,000 sq m, the hospital specializes in cardiovascular care.

The hospital provides services in many different fields as adult cardiology, pediatric cardiology, cardiac surgery, catheterization, angiography, pacemaker, cardiac electrophysiology, ablation, rehabilitation, cardiac imaging (echocardiography, fetal heart echocardiography, CT scan, MRI, and radioisotope), Holter monitoring, as well as outpatient care.