In a procedure described as a milestone in neonatal care and organ transplantation, a six-day-old baby girl’s kidneys and liver cells were given to two separate recipients after her heart stopped beating. Experts argue there is potential for more life-saving donations, but say current UK guidelines are prohibitive.
An official review is expected by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health this year. Writing in the journal Archives of Diseases in Childhood, doctors describe the case of the baby girl who was born in extremely poor health. Tests suggest she had been starved of oxygen before birth and despite resuscitation had profound brain damage.
Doctors at Imperial College NHS Trust in London say in an act of "extraordinary generosity" her parents agreed that her organs could be donated once her heart stopped beating. Her kidneys were given to a patient with renal failure. And in a separate operation her liver cells were transfused to someone with a failing liver. Medics said the surgery was incredibly difficult and intricate. The kidneys at this stage of life are around 5cm long.