Summary:
- Mulago National Referral Hospital successfully discharged both a kidney transplant recipient and donor, following the hospital’s first successful kidney transplant on December 20, 2023, with both individuals reported to be in good health.
Mulago National Referral Hospital has released a patient who recently underwent a successful kidney transplant. Dr. Rosemary Byanyima, the acting executive director at Mulago, confirmed that the kidney donor was also discharged this week. Both the donor and the recipient are reported to be in good health, according to Byanyima, who shared this information with Examiner during a telephone interview on January 5, 2023.
A kidney transplant is a surgical procedure involving the placement of a healthy kidney, sourced from a living or deceased donor, into an individual whose own kidneys are no longer functioning properly. The kidneys, two bean-shaped organs located on each side of the spine just below the rib cage, play a crucial role in filtering and removing waste, minerals, and fluid from the blood by producing urine.
This positive update follows statements made by Health Minister Dr. Jane Ruth Aceng in the previous year, announcing that on December 20, 2023, Mulago Hospital successfully conducted its inaugural kidney transplant on a patient who had been on dialysis for two years. The hospital ensured that patients underwent pre-transplant counseling, including the consent process involving the recipient, donor, and next of kin.
Currently, Mulago Hospital conducts approximately 1,082 dialysis sessions each year for patients suffering from end-stage kidney disease, commonly known as kidney failure. Kirruddu Hospital manages a comparable number, while other regional referral hospitals in locations like Mbarara and Lira provide dialysis services to patients in those regions.
Kidney failure is a medical condition characterized by the kidneys’ inability to adequately filter waste products from the blood. Dialysis is a medical procedure employed to remove waste products and excess fluid from the blood when the kidneys cease to function properly.
