The gesture by families of two brain-dead patients at AIIMS to donate the organs gave a new lease of life to seven people in a span of just 48 hours.

Two hearts, four kidneys, two livers, four corneas and bones were transplanted by teams of doctors at the premier hospital. One of the deceased, 26 years old, a native of Kashganj in Uttar Pradesh, who worked as a daily wager in Delhi, fell from the second floor of a building and was brought to AIIMS Trauma Centre on February 13, Dr Aarti Vij, professor in-charge, Organ Retrieval Banking Organisation (ORBO) at AIIMS, said. On February 15, he was declared brain dead. Members of the ORBO at AIIMS counselled the grieving family members, who decided to donate his heart, liver, kidneys and corneas.

Another person, 61-year-old, a resident of Delhi, was a pledged donor with the Dadhichi Deh Dan Samiti and was declared brain dead at AIIMS. AIIMS Director lauded the contribution of the donor families, saying they took a difficult decision in the most painful moments of their lives. He also said that ORBO, AIIMS, is the first institute which has implemented "Declaration of the Brain Death" by treating physician and "Mandatory Request" for organ and tissue donation to relatives of potential donors as per provisions of the "Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act".

"There is a huge gap between demand and supply of human organs and tissues. In our country, around 1.5-2 lakh patients require kidney transplantation but only 7,500-8,000 patients receive it. Around 75,000-80,000 patients require liver transplants annually but only around 1,800 are performed," he said.

Similarly, 2 lakh patients are in need of corneal transplantation but only 50,000 undergo the treatment. In case of heart transplantation, the scenario is even more dismal. More than 10,000 people require heart transplants whereas only 150-200 transplants are performed annually. Dr Vij said AIIMS Delhi has been successfully conducting heart, liver, kidney and pancreas transplantation, and has a fully functional heart valve bank, cornea and bone bank.

"While there is an increase in awareness among the public about organ donation, still there is a plethora of misconceptions and hurdles like non-acceptance of brain death of the patients by their relatives, disfigurement of body, religious myths and high density of migrant population in the metro cities like Delhi/NCR etc., thereby leading to unavailability of immediate relatives," Vij said. Regular awareness programmes for the general public and training programmes for medical and paramedical professionals are also conducted, she added.