Thai Doctors Carry Out The Country's First Successful Pancreas Transplant

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Thai Doctors Carry Out The Country's First Successful Pancreas Transplant

BANGKOK, Dec 23 (Bernama) -- Thai doctors have successfully carried out a pancreas transplant for the first time in the Kingdom, according Thai news agency on Thursday.

Announcing the success, Dr. Yongyuth Siriwathana-aksorn, head of the liver surgery unit, who led the successful the three-hour transplant surgery on Oct 29 this year, said the 47-year old Somnuek Pisaipan received a new pancreas from a donor, and later the organ was attached to his blood vessels and his small intestine near the left side of his pelvis.

"The patient's new pancreas started to produce insulin only one day after the transplant.

"Since the transplant, he has not developed any complications over the past two months and his blood sugar has been at a normal level without having to depend on any insulin injection or a sugar reduction drug," Dr Yongyuth said in a press conference.

Also attended were Clinical Professor Dr Teerawat Kulthanant, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital and the team of the Thai surgeons who were involved in the successful transplant.

Dr. Yongyuth said the patient suffered from insulin-dependent diabetes since his age of 20, and need two to four insulin injections daily, and his diabetes also caused chronic renal failure, and due to this, he needed dialysis twice a week.

In 2007, the man underwent a kidney transplant, thanks to a donor. However, he still needed insulin injections daily to control his sugar levels.

The world's first successful pancreas transplant was recorded in 1966. As such transplants are subject to many sensitive factors, patients with successful pancreas transplants have numbered only some 20,000 worldwide so far.

bernama.com

[superman]

Only taken them 44 years to copy the rest of the world. Bless 'em.

[DrB0b]

^True. But think of the financial opportunities it's opened up. Now rich Arabs won't have to go to India to receive the stolen pancreases of street children. They can now enjoy the luxury of a Thai medical resort and a choice of Burmese, hill-tribe, or Cambodian pancreases.

[billy the kid]

another option, another dollar.

[Thormaturge]

The saddest thing here is all the brain donors still walking about years after the operation

[nigelandjan]

Well done to them ! who knows oneday