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For a family that just witnessed an unforeseen, untimely death of a loved one, we can all but imagine the sorrow that befalls them. But when the loved one is none other than your own child, the heartache can never be articulated.
A Sydney-based Indian couple were put through a similar ordeal when their seven-year-old son was declared brain dead on January 30th, 2016. Despite having to deal with the recent devastation inflicted upon their lives, the couple eagerly expressed their willingness to donate their son’s organs to the needy.
The Australia based Indian family were at the fag-end of their holiday in Mumbai when the seven-year-old donor, Deyaan Udani, complained of severe headache and collapsed two hours before they were to head to the International Airport for their departure from India on January 22nd, 2016. He was rushed to the Nanavati Hospital where he was diagnosed with multiple clots in his brain. He was then moved to Mahim’s P D Hinduja Hospital where a surgery was performed on him on January 27th to release the pressure inside the brain. He did not respond to the surgery and was eventually declared brain dead. According to the doctor, he had suffered from venous thrombosis- a condition where clots are formed in the blood vessels of the brain leading to brain death.
Once the parents approved of organ donation, the donor’s heart, liver and kidneys were harvested and transported to different places. On Sunday, an ambulance carrying the freshly harvested heart cruised through the favourable traffic conditions set up by the traffic police to deliver the organ to Fortis in Mulund. The transplantation was to be carried out on a girl, Madhavi Vishwakarma, who was as old as the donor. She had been diagnosed with dilated cardiomyopathy-a condition where the heart becomes enlarged and results in improper functioning of the heart.
Mumbai saw its youngest donor’s heart being transplanted into its youngest recipient on the 31st of January. “A seven-year-old cannot be transplanted with a heart of an adult patient. We were surprised when we found the donor was also seven. It is an exceptional task to find a perfect match, in terms of age, weight, height and blood group,” said Dr. Vijay Agarwal, pediatric cardiac transplant surgeon, Fortis hospital, who performed the transplantation on Sunday morning. Madhavi’s family was told that she had a very few weeks left because of her poorly functioning heart. She had been admitted to the hospital thrice in the last month suffering from congestive heart failure. But now, owing to the successful transplantation she might be able to lead a normal life.
The young donor’s liver was transplanted into a 31-year-old man at Jupiter Hospital and his kidneys were life-savers for two boys aged eleven and fifteen. The decision of the couple to go ahead with the organ donation was influenced by their deceased son who had expressed his desire to donate his organs later in his life. His mother recounted to Dr. Sucheta Desai “Once he asked how he could become an organ donor after seeing my driving license(driving licence in Australia mentions if a person is an organ donor)”. Even though the child would not have been aware of what organ donation meant at that time, he still recognised that it was a good deed and wanted to be a part of it someday. Unfortunately the someday came too early for him.
Deyaan Udani and his family have been the reason for reviving the lives of four people who would never have had a chance at life.TLI admires the strength and resolve of his parents and hopes that they can cope with their recent loss. We also appreciate all the donors and their families for their valuable contribution to the world. We shall always be indebted to them!
