Categories: Transplantation

Lung Transplant: An Overview

Table of Content

Introduction

To breathe is to be alive and the oxygen contained in your every breath is the life-sustaining force for this.
Every single cell in the human body needs a continuous supply of oxygen and constant removal of carbon dioxide that is produced by metabolism for proper functioning.
Oxygen is carried to the cells and carbon dioxide is removed from them by components of blood; blood is the vehicle that transports these vital gases and normal pumping of the heart is needed to keep these gases flowing.
The lungs extract the oxygen from the inhaled air and dissolve them into the blood; simultaneously, the lungs also remove the carbon dioxide accumulated in blood.

A Few Facts About Breathing

We breathe 12-15 times per minute normally and move 6 liters of air containing 1.25 liters of oxygen into the body every minute.
We move 9000 liters of air and 1800 liters of oxygen into and out of the lungs at rest in a day.
Considering that we move 3-4 times more on mild to moderate exercise, this is typically at 12000 liters of air each day and 2500 liters of oxygen each day.
Oxygen is thus the petrol on which our body runs.

Also Read: Is shortness of breath a heart or lung problem?

Lung Transplantation – When Is It Needed?

Like any other organ in the body, the lung too is vulnerable to a wide range of diseases. Sometimes, these are diagnosed in advanced conditions when extreme damage has occurred. Sometimes, the treatments of some of these conditions are not completely effective and the disease progresses to irreversible damage over time.
When your lungs are damaged to the extent that they are unable to supply the 500 liters of oxygen needed each day by your body, your doctor diagnoses chronic respiratory failure and will start you on life-long oxygen.
Unfortunately, these diseases will continue to worsen slowly with time and sometimes abruptly because of infections, smoke exposure and blood clots.
At this point, use of extra oxygen alone is not enough to get the needed oxygen across the damaged lungs and this can lead to loss of life .
Lung transplantation is an advanced, life-saving treatment where your damaged lungs are replaced with healthy lungs donated by a brain-dead person, enabling you to sustain normal breathing without oxygen.
About 6000 lung transplants are done successfully each year across the world and the first successful lung transplant was done in 1983.

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Frequently Asked Questions

1. Why is oxygen important for the body?

Oxygen is essential for every cell to function and sustain life. It is carried by the blood to cells, while carbon dioxide is removed.

2. How much air do we breathe daily?

At rest, we breathe approximately 9,000 litres of air and 1,800 liters of oxygen each day.

3. What causes chronic respiratory failure?

Lung diseases that progress to severe, irreversible damage can cause chronic respiratory failure, requiring lifelong oxygen therapy.

4. When is a lung transplant needed?

A lung transplant is needed when the lungs are so damaged that they can’t supply enough oxygen to the body, even with extra oxygen.

5. How does a lung transplant help?

A lung transplant replaces damaged lungs with healthy ones from a brain-dead donor, enabling normal breathing without supplemental oxygen.

6. How common are lung transplants?

Approximately 6,000 lung transplants are performed successfully worldwide each year.

7. When was the first successful lung transplant?

The first successful lung transplant was performed in 1983.

Kauvery Hospital is globally known for its multidisciplinary services at all its Centers of Excellence, and for its comprehensive, Avant-Grade technology, especially in diagnostics and remedial care in heart diseases, transplantation, vascular and neurosciences medicine. Located in the heart of Trichy (Tennur, Royal Road and Alexandria Road (Cantonment), Chennai, Hosur, Salem, Tirunelveli and Bengaluru, the hospital also renders adult and pediatric trauma care.

Chennai – 044 4000 6000 • Trichy – Cantonment – 0431 4077777 • Trichy – Heartcity – 0431 4003500 • Trichy – Tennur – 0431 4022555 • Hosur – 04344 272727 • Salem – 0427 2677777 • Tirunelveli – 0462 4006000 • Bengaluru – 080 6801 6801