Kyiv surgeons save three kids with organs from 4-year-old amid Russian missile attacks
Photo: Organs from a 4-year-old donor were transplanted at Kyiv's Okhmatdyt hospital amid shelling (facebook.com/ndslohmatdyt)
Despite air raid alerts and explosions in the capital, doctors at Okhmatdyt performed an organ transplant from a 4-year-old girl after brain death was confirmed. Thanks to the parents' decision, three children's lives were saved, informs Kyiv's Okhmatdyt hospital.
Recently, for the first time since diagnosing brain death in a child, Okhmatdyt doctors obtained parental consent for posthumous organ donation. They then carried out organ transplants for other children.
"This is a story about humanity, the incredible strength of a parental decision, and a chance for life even in the hardest times," doctors said.
At the end of last week, a 4-year-old girl from the Zhytomyr region was brought to Okhmatdyt. By the night of July 10, a medical board confirmed brain death.
"This was the first case in our hospital when doctors, together with psychologists, navigated the difficult process with the family and obtained parental consent for posthumous donation. This decision is heroic. It saved three lives immediately," Okhmatdyt said.
After consent was signed, specialists from Okhmatdyt and the Ukrainian Transplant Coordination Center began meticulous work.
They had to manage logistics, select recipients, and organize everything amid air raid alerts and missile attacks.
The Unified State Transplant Information System (YEDIST) identified the recipients. Two were already in Okhmatdyt. They included:
- A 16-year-old girl with Wilson-Konovalov disease. She had the highest emergency status and was in intensive care. This transplant was her only chance to survive. She received a liver transplant.
- A 14-year-old boy who had been on dialysis at Okhmatdyt for over seven months. He received a kidney transplant.
- That same night, the Heart Institute of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine transplanted a heart to a 12-year-old girl with the highest emergency status.
The operations lasted more than 13 hours.
"Our recipients were very critical cases. I am sincerely grateful to the parents for understanding that their decision gave three children a chance at life. This is the first case at Okhmatdyt where brain death diagnosis, organ retrieval, and transplantation were all performed," transplant surgeon Oleh Hodik said.
Despite nighttime explosions, drone flights, missile strikes, and sirens, medical staff did not stop.
"Every minute counts: the less time organs spend outside the body, the higher the chance of success. We express our sincere gratitude to the family that chose the path of kindness despite unspeakable pain," the hospital added.
Russian missile strike on Kyiv's Okhmatdyt hospital
On July 8 last year, Russia launched a massive missile attack on Ukraine. Russian forces targeted Kyiv, hitting the children's hospital Okhmatdyt.
The attack killed two people and injured 32 people who sought medical help. Eight children were hospitalized with injuries.
