Miracle in war-torn Ukraine: Girl receives heart of 4-year-old in groundbreaking transplant

In war-torn Ukraine, a six-year-old girl has undergone a successful heart transplant, despite the constant threat of Russian missiles. According to CNN, quoting the Heart Institute of Ukraine's Ministry of Health, the surgery took place in the capital city of Kyiv on Sunday evening. The three-hour operation involved transplanting the heart of a four-year-old boy who had been declared brain dead after experiencing an aneurysm, which is a bulge or ballooning in a blood vessel.

This groundbreaking surgery marks the first time a heart transplant has been performed on a child as young as six, as stated by the Heart Institute. CNN further reported that the operation was especially unique because both the donor and the recipient were very young children, requiring additional effort from the medical team. In 2021, a similar procedure had been carried out on a 13-year-old boy from the Volyn region.

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The surgical team, led by Dr. Boris Todurov, the chief scientist of the department of surgical and minimally invasive treatment, successfully performed Sunday's surgery. According to CNN's report, the operation proceeded smoothly, and the girl was extubated just two hours after the procedure. Dr. Todurov shared the update in a Facebook post, as reported by the outlet.

The Heart Institute released images from the surgery, capturing the poignant moment when the mother of the boy who donated his heart stood by the girl's bedside. Oksana Dmytrieva, chairman of the Ukrainian Parliament's subcommittee on modern medical technologies and transplantation development, expressed her deeply moved sentiments on Facebook. She stated that it was incredibly touching to see the mother of the deceased boy listening to her child's heart beating in another child's chest, and the photo brought tears to her eyes.

Amidst the ongoing war, the Heart Institute shared that this year alone, 23 heart transplants have been successfully performed in Ukraine. This remarkable achievement demonstrates the resilience and determination of the medical community in the face of adversity. Despite the challenges presented by the war, Ukrainian doctors continue to save lives and offer hope through groundbreaking procedures like heart transplants.

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