Photo credit: Kapaopae
John Nicholas of Chicago has become the first patient to undergo a kidney transplant while conscious, according to doctors at Northwestern Medicine in Chicago.
Instead of using a standard general anesthetic, doctors used a single spinal injection to numb Nicholas while he remained conscious.
“At one point during the procedure, I remember asking, 'Should I expect the spinal anesthesia to start kicking in?'” Nicholas, 28, recalled in a news release. “They had already performed so much surgery that I was completely unaware of the fact. I really didn't feel anything.”
This new option could make transplants more accessible to people with health conditions that put them at higher risk for general anesthesia, doctors say, and it could also significantly shorten transplant patients' hospital stays.
Nicholas underwent a successful operation on May 24 and was released from hospital the next day. Doctors said kidney transplant patients typically stay in hospital for two to three days.
“It was a great experience in the operating room to show the patient what their new kidney looks like before it was put in their body,” Dr. Satish Nadig, transplant surgeon and director of Northwestern Medicine's Comprehensive Transplant Center, said in a news release. “Another great thing was that the patient was able to leave the hospital within 24 hours. It's essentially an outpatient procedure. We're hopeful that awake kidney transplantation will reduce some of the risks of general anesthesia and shorten patients' hospital stays.”
Nicholas' surgical team performed his kidney transplant in just under two hours. Nicholas had no health risks that would prevent him from undergoing general anesthesia, nor did he have a fear of general anesthesia. In fact, his age and minimal risk factors made him an ideal candidate for a career on the front lines of medicine, and Nicholas jumped at the opportunity.
“He was a very compliant patient, in tune with his body and willing to push its limits,” said Dr. Vinayak Lohan, a transplant surgeon at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. “He had the utmost trust in us, and we had the utmost trust in him.”
Northwestern Medicine plans to make this type of surgery available to patients who cannot undergo general anesthesia or who may benefit from it.
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