Best Lung Transplant Surgery In India | Lung Transplant Surgery

Lung Transplant - Overview

A lung transplant is a surgical procedure to replace and transplant a diseased or failing lung with a healthy lung, usually from a deceased donor. A lung transplant is reserved for people to improve the quality of life and help the patients to breathe easily and extend the lifespan for people who have severe or advanced chronic lung conditions. This treatment is the last resort when other medications or treatments have not worked and patient conditions haven’t sufficiently improved.

Lung Transplant - Symptoms

Your doctor may recommend a Lung transplant when the lung is failing because of any of the below-mentioned disease:

The most common lung diseases for which people undergo lung transplant are:

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (emphysema and chronic bronchitis)
Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis
Cystic fibrosis
Idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension

Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis: This is yet another type of chronic lung disease characterized by a progressive and irreversible decline in lung function. In this condition, the tissues of the lungs become stiff, thick or scarred over time.

Lung Transplant - Pre-Procedure

Before performing the actual surgery your doctor will recommend a few tests to assess whether you are medically fit to take the operation or not. Some of these tests include:

Colonoscopy, Pap smear, etc.
Echocardiogram, Cardiac catheterization, etc. to assess your heart condition
Blood tests are recommended to check the infections

Also, you will be asked to stop smoking and drinking alcohol and do not put on weight. Follow your exercise regime which you learned during pulmonary rehabilitation.

Lung Transplant - During Procedure

During the procedure, the transplant team will first explain you the procedure in detail and resolve any other queries that you might have. You will be advised to stop eating or drinking for 8 hours before the surgery.

The following steps will happen once the operation begins.

First, the patient is give general anesthesia to make him sleep. The surgery takes approx 4 to 8 to last.
Then there will be Incubation that will be put in the neck, wrist, under the collarbone (subclavian) or the groin which will help the patient breathe, provide medication and help with other bodily functions. These tubes are also used to monitor your heart and blood pressure, and to take blood samples.
Following that the surgeon will make an incision in the chest to assess the main airway and replace the deceased lung with the donor’s lung.
After replacing the lung the surgeon will connect the healthy donor lung, reconnect the blood vessels, and close the chest.

In some of the cases, a double lung transplant is required; in that case, a heart-lung bypass machine will be connected to you.

Lung Transplant - Post-Procedure

After lung transplantation surgery you will be closely monitored in ICU for about 3 to 5 days. You will be placed on a ventilator to help you breathe effectively. There’s a tube in the chest, inserted during the procedure that will help you in draining fluids from lungs and heart. Usually the patient gets discharged in 10 to 15 days after the surgery. Later, the patient is asked to have frequent consultations along with a few other tests like blood tests, chest X-Ray, ECG for almost 3 months. Smoking and alcohol consumption are strictly disallowed to the patient. Other Immunosuppressant’s and blood-thinning medications are give that have to be taken for the rest of the life.

Lung Transplant - Risk & Complications

Liver transplant is a complex surgery and it involves several risks and complications. Major risks include:

Infection
Diabetes
In rare cases, cancer
Kidney damage
High BP and cholesterol
Rejection of new lung by the body
Diarrhea

Lung Transplant - Doctors

Dr.Naresh Trehan

Chairman, MBBS

Cardiologist

40 years of experience
Dr. Anil Bhan

Chairman , MCh, MS, MBBS

Cardiologist

37 years of experience
Dr. Abhideep Chaudhary

Consultant , MBBS, MS, Fellowship

Surgical Gastroenterologist

10 years of experience
Dr. Sandeep Attawar

Director , MBBS, MS, MCh

Cardiologist

22 years of experience