Arun Jaitley moved from ICU after transplant

New Delhi: Union finance minister Arun Jaitley, who underwent a kidney transplant operation on May 14, has now been shifted out from Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of AIIMS to a private ward of Cardio-Neuro centre. A team of transplant experts are monitoring his post-operative recovery “He was shifted out of the ICU to a private ward of the Cardio-Neuro Centre during the weekend. He is recovering well,” sources said.

According to AIIMS sources, the kidney was donated to the 65-year-old minister by a distant relative, a middle-aged woman. This fell under the category of ‘live unrelated donation’. “Living, unrelated donor could be anyone who is emotionally attached to the recipient, such as friend, a relative, a neighbour or an in-law. The authorisation committee had given its approval before the procedure,” they added.

In September 2014, he underwent a surgery to treat a diabetic condition and weight gain. The surgery first performed at Max Hospital, but he was later shifted to AIIMS because of complications.

During transplant surgeries, the recipient is put on immunosuppressants in order to lower the body’s ability to reject a transplanted organ and thus is kept in isolation to avoid any infection.

The surgery was carried out at the cardio-thoracic centre by a team of 20 personnel, including transplant surgeons and transplant anesthesiologists.

The team included former chief of AIIMS renal transplant division Sandeep Guleria, currently working with Apollo Hospital, surgeon V K Bansal, nephrologist Sandeep Mahajan and AIIMS Director Randeep Guleria.

Sandeep Guleria is the brother of Randeep Guleria and a family friend of the minister. Mr Jaitley had confirmed his illness in a tweet on April 6. “I am being treated for kidney related problems and certain infections that I have contracted,” he had tweeted.