Mysuru gets zonal status for organ transplants; To facilitate local organ allocation in five districts

Mysore/Mysuru: In a significant development that will encourage organ donation for needy recipients who are on the long waiting list, Mysuru has been accorded the status of the fifth zone under the State Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation (SOTTO formerly Jeevasarthakathe) in Karnataka. In a related development, the Mysore Medical College and Research Institute (MMC&RI)  will soon get a licence for organ retrieval from brain-dead patients and this announcement was made by Dr. M. Kiran Kumar, Member-Secretary, SOTTO and Joint Director (Medical), Department of Health and Family Welfare.

Speaking at an event held at Rani Bahadur Auditorium in city yesterday, Dr. Kiran Kumar  presented the certificate of accreditation to Dr. M.R. Niranjan, Nodal Officer, MMC&RI, Dr. K.R. Dakshayani, Dean and Director, MMC&RI and to N.G. Bharateesha Reddy, Vice-President  and Unit Head, Apollo BGS Hospitals, Mysuru.

Mysuru being accorded the zonal status will boost organ transplants in Mysuru, Mandya, Hassan, Kodagu and Chamarajanagar districts. Currently, SOTTO functions are divided into four zones — Kalaburagi, Hubballi, Mangaluru and Bengaluru — and patients from Mysuru, Mandya, Hassan, Chamarajanagar and Kodagu districts had to go to the Bengaluru zone for their Donor Specific Antibodies (DSA) cross-match. This was a cumbersome and time-consuming process. At the seventh executive meeting of SOTTO, it was resolved to accord zonal status to Mysuru to help save time for the patients and encourage organ allocation locally.

Enables easy coordination

Speaking to Star of Mysore this morning, Dr. Dakshayini said that the MMC&RI will facilitate the setting up of the fifth zone and space will be provided at the institute. “Though Mysuru has a number of super-speciality and multi-speciality hospitals that have specialisations in organ transplants, patients in need had to go to Bengaluru. Now, the coordinating agencies can function from the MMC&RI premises and coordinate with the patients and the enlisted hospitals,” she said.

“Mysuru as a separate zone can encourage more Continuing Medical Education (CME) for the medical professionals to train them on brain-dead certifications and to establish more transplant centres. This will at the same time, boost transplant activities in the districts that come under Mysuru,” Dr. Dakshayini added.

“The authorities have assured us that the licence for organ retrieval from brain-dead patients will soon be accorded to the MMC&RI. The zonal status will also help increase awareness activities and motivate the community to conduct programmes on organ donations,” she said.

Addressing the gathering at the event, Dr. Kiran Kumar said that the waiting list for organ transplants was getting longer in Karnataka as over 5,000 patients are on the waiting list for a kidney transplant and only 15 percent of organ retrieval happens in Government Hospitals. There are 1,400 patients on the waiting list for liver transplants including 100 in Mysuru, he added.

Dr. M.S. Rajesh Kumar, Resident Medical Officer (RMO), MMC&RI, Dr. M. Roopa of Suvarna Arogya Suraksha Trust (SAST), Lijamol Joseph, Chief Transplant Coordinator, SOTTO, Karnataka and transplant surgeons were present.