110 amputees across the state waiting for hand transplantation

According to doctors at the institute, a separate category in the Organ Donation programme for hands could add an impetus. Chennai-based K Karthik (30) whose hands had to be amputated after he suffered a high voltage shock more than seven years ago, is a hopeful man. “I hope to use my hands as I used to before the accident. I have got used to living without it, but having functional hands is as necessary as air,” he says. 

Like Karthik, S Varadharajan (40), a Cuddalore-based car driver, who continues to drive after an accident both his hands useless, wants to lead a normal life. “I get pulled up by the police when I go on trips and they tell me I shouldn’t be driving as I am disabled. I explain to them that it is my only source of income,” he says.

Both were present at the hand transplant awareness programme held at the Government Stanley Medical College Hospital on Friday. They are among the 110 amputees from across the state, who are on the waiting list of the hospital’s hand transplant programme. It is the only public hospital with the license to perform the complex procedure in the country. However, even five years after the programme took off, the hospital hasn’t been able to find donors. 

The experts at the Institute for Research and Rehabilitation of Hand and Department of Plastic Surgery that has been carrying out innovative procedures said that if hand could be singled out as a separate category in the state’s organ donation programme, it would be easy to find donors. However, according to Dr P Balaji of the Transplant Authority of Tamil Nadu, there is a long winding process before the same is approved. 

“Getting an approval will also involve the Central Ministry and a GO has to be passed accordingly. However, we do agree there is a lack of awareness about hand transplants. In some cases of other vital organs, we are facing problems in convincing families to come forward to donate,” he says.

The numbers of hand transplants carried worldwide are a little over 100. In fact, in India, only three such transplants have been performed - all by the Amritha Institute of Medical Sciences in Kochi. The complex procedure involves connecting two bones, three nerves, 20 tendons, two arteries and two veins. The procedure involves a multi-disciplinary approach performed over 8-12 hours.