Chennai: A two-year-old boy’s death in Bengaluru has saved the life of another boy from Russia. The recipient of a donor heart two-year-old baby Gleb from Moscow has become the youngest heart transplant patient in India providing a ray of hope to hundreds of other children suffering from heart failure.
All of two years and nine months Gleb Kudriavtsev from Russia was suffering from restrictive cardiomyopathy, a rare condition where the heart muscle thickens and loses its ability to pump blood properly. From being a healthy baby Nelli saw her son go breathless and suffer from heart failure at the age of one. Doctors told Nelli that a heart transplant was the only solution for the boy from Moscow.
Talking about her son, Nelli Kudriavtceva said, “When my son Gleb was six months old we found that his abdomen was unusually swollen. Back in Moscow I was told by the doctors that my son was suffering from Restrictive Cardio Myopathy and unfortunately the reasons to this were completely unknown. With immense mental strength and a heart filled with hope for my son, I went ahead and spoke to many doctors across borders and countries and Fortis Malar hospital was my final destination.”
Gleb’s condition deteriorated as he waited for a donor heart in hospital. It was then help came from Bengaluru when the parents of a two-year-old boy, who was declared brain dead agreed to donate his organs. Racing against the clock, a green corridor was created for the ambulance as the heart was then air-lifted from Bengaluru to Chennai in 47 minutes.
Dr KR Balakrishnan, Director Cardiac Sciences at Fortis Malar, who headed the surgery, said, “The biggest challenge in pediatric transplant is to get a donor. Worldwide there is a huge shortage of pediatric donors. Number two is several times a suitable donor is available in a remote location. So transporting the organ becomes a challenge especially in a country like ours where we have huge infrastructural issues. This one was from Bangalore. So we had to look at road transport from the hospital in Bangalore to the airport. And then we could hire an air ambulance.”
Gleb’s surgery lasted for over 8 hours. After taking ten days to adjust to his new heart Gleb is now like any other two-year-old his age smiling, laughing and playing with his mother.
Nelli Kudriavtceva, a grateful mother said, “When they found a donor for my kid I was not too sure whether it would match. However, I was absolutely calm and undeterred. I was so scared and emotional when my child was being wheeled in for surgery. But, I realised that nothing can be worse than the fear of losing my own baby. After the transplant, when I got him in my hands, to see him move in my hands it was like almost he was born again. He is my future.”
Two-year-old Gleb’s story is indeed one of hope. It is not only India’s youngest heart transplant, but Gleb’s case also highlights the need to raise awareness about pediatric organ donation in the country say the people involved in the exercise to save the boy.
