THREE DECADES OF SAVING HEARTS: UNION MINISTER HONOURS DR KR BALAKRISHNAN and team , MGM HEALTHCARE FOR PERFORMING OVER 500 SUCCESSFUL HEART AND LUNGTRANSPLANTS IN INDIA
~MGM Healthcare showcases revolutionary prototype technology for last
mile faster transport of organs for transplants~
03 September, Chennai: Dr K R Balakrishnan, Chairman – Cardiac Sciences, Director –
Institute of Heart and Lung Transplant & Mechanical Circulatory Support, MGM Healthcare
and his team was felicitated by Shri. Nitin Jairam Gadkari, Hon’ble Minister for Road
Transport and Highways of India today in the presence of Thiru. Ma. Subramanian, Hon’ble
Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Government of Tamil Nadu, for having performed
over 500 heart and lung transplants successfully in India and running the largest adult and
paediatric heart transplant program in India. Incidentally, the record 500 plus Heart & Lung
transplants is the highest number performed by one team in the entire Asia Pacific region.
Dr Sunil Shroff, Managing Trustee, Mohan Foundation and Mr. MK Rajagopalan, Chairman-
MGM Healthcare, Chennai were also present.
On the occasion, Shri. Nitin Gadkari also unveiled India’s first ‘prototype’ drone technology
co-created by MGM Healthcare, aimed at revolutionising last mile transportation of organs
for transplants. Thiru. Ma. Subramanian commended the prototype and said that this
would pave the way for more lives to be saved and ensured all support to make it
operational soon. He further added, “Chennai and MGM Healthcare is a frontrunner in the
organ transplant programme and is at par with the very best in the world today”.
Dr. K.R. Balakrishnan said, “ We have successfully completed 514 heart and lung transplants
including over 200 transplants over the last two years despite lockdowns and the Covid
pandemic and this was possible due to the tremendous support and expertise of the team,
the government bodies and transport teams. The infrastructure and support by MGM
Healthcare also helped us treat over 350 ECMO patients which is once again the highest in
the country. We have also performed over 100 paediatric transplants and over 4600
interventional cases, free of cost in association with Aishwarya Trust – ‘Caring for Little
Hearts’ and completed over 220 procedures under the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister’s
scheme,”.
Key facts
· Southeast Asia, Middle East &
Africa’s First Biventricular Berlin
Heart Implantation on 3-Year-
Old-Russian boy
· Asia’s first Bilateral Lung
Transplant on a Covid Positive
Patient
· India’s first Successful HVAD
· India’s first Successful LVAD
· Asia Pacific’s first successful
Paediatric Impellar pump in a child
· Youngest bilateral lung transplant
in a 4 year old child
· MGM Healthcare runs India’s
largest heart transplant
programme
Dr. Suresh Rao, Co-Director, Institute of Heart and Lung Transplant & Mechanical
Circulatory Support, MGM Healthcare added “Running India’s largest heart and lung
transplant program is made possible by the dedicated efforts of Dr. KR Balakrishnan and our
team’s expertise in the domain as well as in mechanical circulatory support program”.
Dr. Ravikumar R, Sr. Consultant & Associate Clinical Lead -Cardiology & Heart Failure
Program, MGM Healthcare said, “Heart failure is an under recognised problem in India. The
quality of life and longevity of end stage heart failure patients not responding to
conventional therapy can be improved by advanced procedures like heart transplant and
Left Ventricular Assist Device (LVAD)”.
Dr. Prashanth Rajagopalan, Director, MGM Healthcare said “A milestone like this gives us
the chance to look back on the efforts of the transplant team. Today, patients from different
countries are coming to India for treatment in large numbers. With this remarkable
achievement, we are further committed in making India as a Global medical hub by
investing in the latest technologies, best clinical talent for better clinical outcomes.”
MGM Healthcare further took the opportunity to felicitate those who have been associated
in the organ transportation program, including airport authorities , police personnel, air
ambulance team ,fund raising agencies, hospital transplant authorities, Government
licensing authorities, NOTO Chief and the medical assistants.
