LAHORE, June 27: At least 18 of the 116 patients on the ‘waiting list’ for liver transplant at Shaikh Zayed Hospital have died during the last eight months, most of them in their hometowns, says a source.

The primary cause of deaths was reportedly acute or massive upper gastrointestinal bleeding.

Of these 18 patients, 16 had been registered for Living Donor Liver Transplantation and declared fit for surgeries on the basis of investigations and availability of donors. Most of these patients were young.

Keeping in view these deaths, at least 26 registered patients left the hospital in search of an alternative. As many as 11 others went to India for treatment.

Of the remaining patients, 52 have failed to arrange donors and eight others have been declared unfit for liver transplant because of multiple complications. Only five patients have undergone liver transplant at SZH so far since August. These transplants were done in ‘rented’ operation theatres of cardiology, urology and kidney departments of SZH.

Shortage of trained surgeons, nurses and paramedics and absence of required facilities at the Arslan Institute of Liver Transplant, Shaikh Zayed Hospital led to patients’ deaths.

The liver transplant centre was functioning without its designated operation theatre and intensive care unit. Medical experts say such a project can’t be even imagined without these two critical departments.

Another factor responsible for these deaths is said to be the delay on part of the College of Physicians and Surgeons Pakistan in recognising this transplant programme. The centre applied for recognition some three months ago.

Dr Tariq Bangash, Dr Amir Latif, Dr Khawar Shahzad and Dr Umer Ali are performing liver transplant surgeries at SZH, but four doctors are not enough to deal with the increasing number of liver patients. They conducted 100 to 150 each liver transplant surgeries abroad before coming to SZH.

Though the Punjab government has decided to upgrade the liver transplant centre at SZH, some senior doctors of the institute are still not in favour of this programme and are creating hurdles in its way, the source says.

Special Assistant to Chief Minister on Health Khawaja Salman Rafique told Dawn the Punjab government was aware of the problems at the liver transplant centre. He said the Punjab government had decided to shift the Hajveri Institute of Organ Transplant from Lawrence Road to SZH to facilitate maximum number of liver transplant patients. He said the government had allocated Rs160 million for the liver transplant programme upgrade.

Rafique said a rift between transplant surgeons and senior doctors of the hospital over some issue affected health care at the liver transplant centre. He said the government had directed the institute to perform a liver transplant a week at least.

About operation theatres and ICUs, Rafique said these facilities would be provided to the centre at the under-construction upper portion of SZH. He said efforts were under way to sort out differences between transplant surgeons and senior doctors.

Fifth surgery: Doctors at the Shaikh Zayed Hospital have performed fifth successful liver transplant surgery, it is learnt.

This is the first liver transplant after SZH has been given under the control of the Punjab government.

Abdul Rasheed (45), who underwent Living Donor Liver Transplantation surgery on June 20, was a resident of Lahore’s Samanabad locality.

Dr Tariq Bangash, Dr Amir Latif, Dr Khawar Shahzad and others did the surgery in 15 hours.

Rasheed’s niece donated him liver tissues and health of both the recipient and the donor is stable, according to doctors.