Donation of human body organs from Kuwait to Saudi Arabia By Zaid Al-Sarbal RIYADH, April 14 (KUNA) -- General Director of Saudi Arabia's Organ Transplant Centre Dr. Faisal Shaheen announced here Monday that the centre received nine organ donors deom Kuwait, out of 41 approved cases in 2002.
In the Centre's monthly newsletter, Dr. Shaheen said that the centre received 10 cases, nine of which were from Kuwait and one from Qatar, within framework of the Gulf Cooperation Council program for organ donation.
Dr. Shaheen added that the number of clinically dead patients notified to the centre in 2002 reached 337 and 208 of which were specified as clinically dead.
"The centre obtained the approval of 41 cases of organ donors while families rejection to donate the organs of their clinically dead relatives patients formed 75 percent of the 177 diagnosed cases." Dr. Shaheen said.
Clinically dead patients provided 57 kidney transplants that were performed in Saudi Arabia, 10 liver transplants, two hearts transplants while 17 hearts where the source of heart valves.
Dr. Shaheen added that only 16 local corneas were transplanted in Saudi Arabia while the rest are from abroad.
Meanwhile, King Faisal Hospital in Riyadh conducted 16 liver transplant operations since the start of the liver transplant programme two years ago, two of these operations were from living donors.
Success rate of these operation reached 95 percent which asserts the quality and success of Saudi Arabia hospital.
There are more than 100 patients in Saudi Arabia in need of liver transplant annually with only 25 patients actually have the transplant. (end) zz.jsy KUNA 141655 Apr 03NNNN