The 78-year-old patient had visited Bengaluru from the U.S. to attend a wedding and choked on his meal; he was taken to the hospital and put on ECMO for 50 days before being brought to MGM Healthcare

A 78-year-old patient with severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) underwent a high-risk lung transplantation at MGM Healthcare, Chennai.

The patient, a resident of the U.S., had visited Bengaluru to attend a wedding. His family had told MGM that he choked on his food and later that night had difficulty breathing. He was taken to a hospital immediately and it was found that some food particles had gone into his lungs. Doctors put him on a ventilator and then initiated him on Extra Corporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) when his situation did not improve. When the patient was brought to MGM, he had been on ECMO for more than 50 days.

Harish Manian, CEO, MGM Healthcare, said this was probably the first case in Asia where a 78-year-old who was on ECMO for nearly two months had undergone a successful bilateral lung transplant. The organ was received from a 25-year-old brain-dead patient from Coimbatore.

A 78-year-old patient with severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) underwent a high-risk lung transplantation at MGM Healthcare, Chennai.

The patient, a resident of the U.S., had visited Bengaluru to attend a wedding. His family had told MGM that he choked on his food and later that night had difficulty breathing. He was taken to a hospital immediately and it was found that some food particles had gone into his lungs. Doctors put him on a ventilator and then initiated him on Extra Corporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) when his situation did not improve. When the patient was brought to MGM, he had been on ECMO for more than 50 days.

Harish Manian, CEO, MGM Healthcare, said this was probably the first case in Asia where a 78-year-old who was on ECMO for nearly two months had undergone a successful bilateral lung transplant. The organ was received from a 25-year-old brain-dead patient from Coimbatore.

“Normally when an older patient’s condition does not improve after 15 days on ECMO, it is recommended to pull the plug. But this patient was wide awake after a month on ECMO and was even reading newspapers. So, we did not have the heart to do it,” said K.R. Balakrishnan, director, Institute of Heart and Lung Transplant and Mechanical Circulatory Support, MGM Healthcare.

Suresh Rao K.G., Co-Director, said the family’s support was vital in going ahead with the transplant. The patient did not have any other comorbidities and had now recovered well, he said.