19-month-old boy becomes Tamil Nadu’s youngest deceased organ donor

CHENNAI: A 19-month-old boy declared brain-dead at Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital (RGGGH) has become Tamil Nadu's youngest organ donor, after his parents, devastated by the loss of their child, made the difficult decision to donate his organs to help save other lives.

The child, from an economically disadvantaged family near Villupuram, was initially taken to a local hospital after his parents noticed that he was unusually tired and unable to eat properly. Given his age, he could not communicate his discomfort or symptoms. He was later referred to RGGGH for advanced treatment.

Doctors diagnosed him with hydrocephalus, a condition in which cerebrospinal fluid accumulates abnormally in the brain's ventricles, increasing pressure on the brain. "The fluid had accumulated rapidly within a very short period. The child was in a critical condition when he reached the hospital. There was no improvement even after surgery," said Dr R Raghavendran, Director of the Institute of Neurosurgery at RGGGH.

The child was treated in the intensive care unit for six days under the supervision of specialists from several departments. Despite intensive treatment and surgery, his condition deteriorated, and he suffered irreversible brain damage. Following mandatory tests and procedures, doctors declared him brain dead.

Dr Raghavendran said the hydrocephalus was linked to a congenital abnormality and that symptoms in some cases may not appear immediately after birth but emerge later.

After the medical team counselled the parents on organ donation, they agreed to donate their son's organs. The mother saw him for the last time before he was taken to the operating theatre. Unable to bear the thought of seeing him again, she left with her husband without looking back after the theatre doors closed.

"My child could not make it. We have done this for other children," the father said.

With the assistance of an NGO, the child's body was later buried, the hospital said.

His two kidneys were donated to a woman in her 20s in Chennai, while his liver was given to a child in Chennai and his heart to another child in Coimbatore.

The donation surpassed RGGGH's previous record of a 20-month-old child who donated organs at the hospital about two years ago.

RGGGH dean Dr K Shantharam described the parents' decision as an extraordinary act of courage. "Organ donation is the highest form of donation. At such a deeply painful moment, they have taken a noble decision," he said.

He said organs from children can, depending on their size and compatibility, be used for transplantation in adults. Dr Raghavendran said kidney transplantation requires appropriate matching of the donor's and recipient's glomerular filtration rate (GFR). While one kidney is generally sufficient in adult-to-adult transplantation, both kidneys may be required when the donor is a very young child.