Medical staff of the Huế Central Hospital conducts a liver transplant. — VNA/VNS Photo

HUẾ — In a coordinated overnight effort, doctors at Huế Central Hospital have successfully used organs and tissues from a brain-dead donor to carry out six life-saving transplants, restoring sight to two patients and stabilising others who had been in critical condition, the hospital said on Wednesday.

The transplants, involving a heart, liver, kidneys and corneas, were performed between April 16 and 18 with the participation of nearly 200 medical staff across clinical and paraclinical departments.

All six recipients had been in a life-threatening condition prior to surgery.

On April 15, the hospital’s Transplant Centre received a request from the family of a 44-year-old Huế resident to donate organs. The patient had suffered a severe traumatic brain injury in an accident, fell into a deep coma and prognosis was already determined to be death. Despite intensive treatment, the condition did not improve.

On April 16, following clinical evaluation and confirmation of brain death in line with medical protocols, the hospital’s Transplant Council notified the National Transplant Coordination Centre to identify suitable recipients from the waiting list.

At 8.45pm that day, after a minute of silence in honour of the donor, surgical teams began procedures simultaneously in five operating rooms under the supervision of Professor Phạm Như Hiệp, the hospital’s director.

Medical teams had worked through the night to complete the transplants.

As of April 27, all recipients were reported to be stable and able to eat. Two patients, from Nghệ An and Quảng Trị provinces, who had suffered from severe corneal ulcers and had been completely blind, partially regained vision and were discharged on April 18.

Director Hiệp said, “At the moment when one life must come to an end, we have strived to open up other lives as fully as possible. Huế Central Hospital extends its deepest gratitude to the donor and their family.

"When one heart stops beating so that many other patients can continue living, this is not merely a medical transfer but an extension of compassion.

“The family has transformed their grief into hope, turning an ending into wondrous new beginnings. We believe that his courage and the family's generosity will live on forever in the renewed lives being continued today.”

Hiệp added that within about a week, the hospital had carried out multiple transplants, including one heart transplant, one liver transplant, 10 kidney transplants, two organ retrievals from brain-dead donors and two cornea transplants.

He said the results have demonstrated the hospital’s technical capability and the coordination of its medical teams. — VNS