Organ transplantation, a medical procedure in where one (or many) organ is removed from one body and placed in the recipient's body to replace the injured organ.
Since ancient times, mythology has mentioned about creatures made of an amalgamation of others by transferring different body parts and skin. We owe to the rigorous efforts of surgeons, immunologists, scientists, and public advocates for making organ donation and transplantation as an accepted topic globally.
It became so popular that people are ready to perform face transplant too. Experiments are going on for lab-grown organs also. Globally, as per recent statistics, more than a lakh transplantations are performed which includes heart, kidney and eye mostly. Meanwhile, today, 31st August marks the first ever simultaneous multi organ transplantation event.
The first recorded transplantation is attributed to the Ebers Papyrus, according to circa 1550 bc. It was mentioned that skin grafting was performed for a patient with burns. Indian surgeon Sushruta, regarded as the 'father of surgery', around 600 bc, performed the first ever plastic surgery operations, where full-thickness skin grafts were used.
The first ever kidney transplantation was performed in 1950s. With unavailable medical options to cure serious disease like nephritis, a team of scientists and surgeons performed first successful kidney transplant in a human. This medical wonder was performed in 1954 which literally converted myths into reality.
"We thank all the living and deceased organ donors, as well as the loved ones of deceased donors, who have provided a lifesaving gift. We also honor all the clinicians and professionals involved in organ donation and transplantation, who work tirelessly to make as many transplants happen as possible every day. We also should rededicate ourselves to meeting the continuing need,” said Jerry McCauley, M.D., M.P.H., president of the UNOS Board of Directors.
Under the supervision of pioneering transplant surgeon Michael DeBakey, five team of doctors performed the first ever simultaneous, multi-organ transplantation.
Through this historic multiple-transplantation procedure, the heart, kidneys, and one lung of a donor were transplanted successfully to four recipients.
Image of Dr. Michael DeBakey.
On this day in 1908, Dr. Michael DeBakey, a Lebanese-American cardiac and vascular surgeon, was born. He is known for his many surgical innovations including coronary bypass operations, carotid endarterectomy, artificial hearts and ventricular assist devices. #Histweet #CTSurgery pic.twitter.com/U4s0iZ0B8s
— Stephen (@SteveYangMD) September 7, 2021
The prolific physician and trainer, DeBakey performed over 60,000 cardiovascular operations during his tenure. He has even trained over 1,000 surgeons who are now making his legacy big globally.
To honour his dedication and hardwork, Michael E. DeBakey International Cardiovascular Surgical Society was established on Jan. 20, 1977. He is considered as one of the pioneers of heart transplant, arterial bypass and artificial heart.
He performed the first ever successful removal of a blockage of the carotid artery, the main artery of the neck supplying blood to the brain.
Not only in USA, DeBakey helped establishing various cardiovascular surgery programs alomg with health-care systems in different countries, including China, Germany, Japan, Italy, Egypt, Spain, Australia, and Saudi Arabia.
His contribution to treat wounded soldiers of second world war is still mentioned brightly in many historical reports.
Telemedicine is a popular concept nowadays. You will be surprised to know that this great physician has performed this technique in 1960s in multiple times. The first instance was
demonstration of an open-heart surgery transmitted overseas via satellite. DeBakey pioneered the field of telemedicine with the first demonstration of open-heart surgery to be transmitted overseas by satellite
"Many people still wait anxiously for a life-giving transplant. We must continue to improve in our capabilities to give them this vital opportunity by ensuring use of as many donated organs as possible," Jerry McCauley highlighted the importance of organ transplantation.
