Intestinal transplant

Category: Health

An intestinal transplant is a complex surgical procedure that involves replacing a damaged or non-functional intestine with a healthy intestine from a donor. This procedure is typically considered when other medical treatments have failed to adequately manage intestinal failure or severe gastrointestinal disorders. Intestinal failure can occur due to a variety of reasons, including congenital defects, diseases such as Crohn's disease or necrotizing enterocolitis, trauma, or surgical complications. When the intestines cannot properly absorb nutrients and fluids, patients can suffer from malnutrition, dehydration, and other severe complications. The intestinal transplant procedure involves removing the damaged intestine and replacing it with a donated intestine. Depending on the patient's condition, the transplant may involve just the small intestine or both the small and large intestines (small bowel and multivisceral transplants, respectively). In some cases, the liver may also be transplanted along with the intestines if there are complications affecting the liver as well. The transplantation process is highly complex and carries significant risks, including rejection of the transplanted organ by the recipient's immune system. Therefore, patients who undergo intestinal transplants require lifelong immunosuppressive medications to prevent organ rejection. Although it is possible for a living donor to donate an intestine segment, most intestine transplants involve a whole organ from a deceased donor. Intestinal transplants is a very challenging procedure. It is the least frequently performed vascularized intra abdominal organ transplants. Small intestinal transplant can be of different types. • Intestine only • Modified multivisceral transplant including all organs except the liver • Full multivisceral transplant including the stomach, duodenum, pancreas, intestine and liver • Combined liver and intestine with pancreas transplant. Dr. Karthik Mathivanan is a medical stalwart with more than 15 years of experience as a multi-organ transplant surgery specialist specializing in liver, small bowel, kidney, and pancreatic transplantation and rehabilitation. He is one of the best liver doctor in Chennai. At MGM Healthcare, he is currently the Associate Director of Liver and Multi￾organ Transplantation, as well as HPB surgery. He is the specialist transplant surgeon to initiate free liver clinics across Tamil Nadu spreading awareness even to very rural and remote areas with minimal access to quality healthcare