42 days old boy undergoes liver transplant in Chennai hospital

CHENNAI: Aryan Sayani from Mumbai, who was just 42 days old then, might be the youngest liver transplant patient in the country, says a Chennai hospital where the boy underwent the procedure on July 23.
The boy was suffering from a rare metabolic condition called urea cycle disorder. Defects in the metabolism caused by genetic mutations led to accumulation of ammonia and other precursor metabolites in the child that threatened to cause brain damage and death.In patients with urea cycle disorder, the body loses ability to covert ammonia, a by-product produced when body metabolises protein.
Doctors in Mumbai advised the Sayanis’ to put Aryan on a stringent diet for at least four months after which he could be taken for a liver transplant surgery. He also received periodic dialysis to remove the ammonia. “But they told us that he could have brain damage if something went wrong. Nothing was predictable, and we did not want our child in this situation,” said the boy’s father Neerav Sayani.
After consulting with doctors at the Dr Rela Institute and Medical Centre in Chennai, the baby was brought to the city by a special air ambulance for a ten hour-liver transplant surgery. His maternal uncle gave a part of his liver. Aryan weighed around 3kg when doctors took him into the operation theatre.
Senior transplant surgeon Dr Mohamed Rela, who led the surgery, said though he had operated on a child as young as five days old more than two decades ago in the UK, medical records show Aryan was the youngest in the country to undergo liver transplant. “I am glad things moved quickly. This prevented brain damage in the child,” Dr Rela said.
On Tuesday, as Aryan smiled at flashing media cameras, doctors said the part of the organ he received had given him a new lease of life. “He is fit for discharge now,” said Dr Rela.
“I wanted my child to be with me. I am glad it happened,” said the boy’s mother Kasbhi Sayani.