Pune surgeons conduct uterine transplants on two women in Gujarat in record 9 hours
Pune's Galaxy Care Hospital conducted the first two successful uterine transplants in India In May 2017, with the third one being completed by the team of surgeons within six hours in January 2018.
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On Monday morning the entire 11 member team returned to Pune and according to Dr Puntambekar both uterine transplant procedures were completed in a span of nine hours. A team of surgeons from Pune’s Galaxy Care Hospital conducted back-to-back uterine transplants on two women — both in their 20s — in record nine hours in Gujarat on Sunday, said officials on Monday.
Such an operation was conducted after an interval of two-and-a-half years, following the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, they added.
“We performed nine uterine transplants, all in Maharashtra, before the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020… Now, with the Gujarat government giving approval for uterine transplants in the state, our 11-member team of surgeons conducted the transplants on the two women on Sunday,” Dr Shailesh Puntambekar, medical director at Galaxy Care Hospital, told The Indian Express.
The team of surgeons returned to Pune on Monday morning, and is planning to carry out the next transplant(s) in West Bengal soon, Dr Puntambekar added.
Both the women were stable, said Dr Milind Telang, chief gynaecologist at Galaxy Care Hospital. “The first patient was 28 years old, who had a small uterus and was infertile. She and her 49-year-old mother — the donor — were evaluated as per the transplant norms, and the transplant was done. The second patient was 22 years old, who suffered from an absent uterus due to Mayer-Rokitansky-Küster-Hauser (MRKH) syndrome. The woman, who has been married for three years, was donated the uterus by her mother following an evaluation,” said Dr Telang. MRKH syndrome is witnessed in one out of 5,000 newborn girls.
“In India, nearly 1.25 lakh girls are born with MRKH syndrome… both the cases were of absolute uterine factor infertility, and the transplants were completed in less than 12 hours — between 9 am and 7.45pm… The donors and the recipients are stable, with no blood transfusion,” Dr Telang added. Absolute uterine factor infertility is a condition where a woman cannot get pregnant because she either does not have an uterus or her uterus is no longer functioning correctly.
“The two women and their families were counselled following the operations,” said Dr Telang. Both the patients were earlier registered with the Pune hospital for the transplant.
Pune’s Galaxy Care Hospital conducted the first two successful uterine transplants in India In May 2017, with the third one being completed by the team of surgeons within six hours in January 2018. The transplants were performed through laparoscopic surgery that made the surgeries painless, and helped in faster recovery, said the hospital officials. Uterine transplants were halted following the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Gujarat government had invited the team of surgeons, headed by Dr Puntambekar, to perform the transplants in Ahmedabad. “It was an advantage for the patients and their families as the transplants were done in their hometown,”
Dr Puntambekar said, adding that the transplants were performed at the Institute of Kidney Diseases and Research Centre, Ahmedabad Civil Hospital campus.
The state authorisation committee, Transplantation of Human Organs Act, Government of Gujarat, in a recent letter, granted the registration for uterus transplant centre to the institute, stating that “the transplants should be conducted by Dr Puntambekar and his qualified team during the first year”.
Dr Vasanthi Ramesh, director, National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation, meanwhile, told The Indian Express, “Uterine transplantation is a life-enhancing or life-giving procedure, and thus is important.”
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