12-yr-old is 200th Pak patient to undergo liver transplant

Sheharyar Ali, 12, the 200th patient from Pakistan to have undergone a liver transplant at the national capital's Indraprastha Apollo Hospital, was a few hours from death when he was admitted to the facility last month.

Sheharyar Ali, 12, the 200th patient from Pakistan to have undergone a liver transplant at the national capital's Indraprastha Apollo Hospital, was a few hours from death when he was admitted to the facility last month.

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"His liver had failed and he was in a state of semi-coma. He was critically sick when he reached us. A little more delay could have been fatal for him," said Dr Anupam Sibal, senior paediatric gastroenterologist at the hospital.

Initially, the airport staff in Pakistan hesitated to allow him to fly. "We had to convince the immigration authorities and they agreed. He was unconscious throughout the journey," said Sayed Shujaat Ali, his father, an executive with a private firm in Karachi.

The child's mother donated a part of her liver to the 12-year-old. "He came here on October 3. We operated upon him on October 6 and he was discharged on October 24. We could hardly spare time as his condition was bad," said Dr Subash Gupta, chief liver transplant surgeon.

Ali had suffered from mild jaundice three years ago. He was diagnosed with chronic liver disease (CLD) in May this year. When he vomited blood, doctors at the Liaquat National Hospital and Medical College in Karachi, where he was undergoing treatment, recommended him to consult doctors in Apollo, New Delhi.

"He was a bright kid and topped all exams. It was painful to see his condition deteriorate. Our faith in the doctors here has strengthened," said Zainab Shujaat, his mother.

Doctors advise people not to take jaundice infection lightly.

A two-year-old boy was the first from the neighbouring country who underwent a transplant at Apollo in 2005. The hospital has carried out transplants on patients from 101 countries since 1998. The hospital has conducted 796 surgeries with more than 90% success rate.