The surgical team at Huế Central Hospital performs the kidney transplant. — VNA/VNS Photo

HUẾ — A kidney preserved for about 18 hours on a journey across Việt Nam began working almost as soon as it was transplanted, the hospital that performed the operation said on Monday.

Huế Central Hospital called the case, carried out in mid-October, a milestone for long-distance kidney transport in the country. It was the hospital’s fifth kidney transplant using a LifePort, a portable machine that pumps chilled preservation fluid through a donor kidney to keep it viable outside the body.

To reach the donor, a brain-dead 22-year-old at a hospital in the Central Highlands province of Gia Lai, a team from Huế drove through the night for nine hours. The kidney went onto the machine as soon as it was removed, and the team flew it to Huế, changing planes in HCM City to save time.

The round trip took nearly a day and a half and covered more than 1,800 kilometres.

A LifePort machine.

Despite the long journey, the kidney turned pink and firm as soon as it was connected to the recipient’s blood supply and began producing urine on the operating table, the hospital said. The patient is recovering well, with stable kidney function.

In the hospital’s previous transplant using the machine, a 12-year-old boy received a kidney from a 26-year-old brain-dead donor in Hà Nội. That kidney also functioned immediately, producing about 3 litres of urine in the first 24 hours and a steady 2 to 2.5 litres a day since.

The boy remains under close observation as he recovers.

Hospital officials said the two cases show how important the machine is for preserving organs, especially those that must travel long distances to reach a transplant centre. — VNS