UAE: Three organs successfully transplanted from COVID-19 patient; 147 transplants done in 2021

UAE: Three organs successfully transplanted from COVID-19 patient; 147 transplants done in 2021

Abu Dhabi: The UAE facilitated 147 organ transplants last year and was one of the few countries to enable transplants from a patient who succumbed to COVID-19, a top transplant official said. “The UAE is quick to adopt the latest health standards and its agile health-care systems enabled interventions even during the pandemic. In fact, we were able to harvest a liver and two kidneys from a COVID-19 positive patient after proving that it was safe to transplant these organs,” Dr Ali Al Obaidli, head of the National Transplantation and Organ Donation Committee, told . “In fact, we were able to facilitate 35 organ transplantations in 2020 from nine donors, and 147 organ donations from 39 people in 2021 alone — compared to just five donors [when we launched the deceased donor organ transplantation programme] in 2017. We are now approaching the stage where we can establish a disease registry to determine a waiting list for organs and a point at which we can encourage residents to exercise their right to pledge organs,” he added. The official was speaking on the sidelines of a two-day conference in which transplant experts from various countries met health professionals in the UAE to