In a first, helicopter flies donor's heart in 10 minutes

For the first time in the city, a donor heart was airlifted to reach the recipient in just 10 minutes on Thursday.

To avoid traffic snarls, the heart of a 45-year-old female was flown from Apollo Hospital, Bannerghatta Road to M S Ramaiah Narayana Heart Centre in Mathikere.

This is the first time an air ambulance was used to transport a heart within the city covering the distance in just 10 minutes. The heart was transplanted to a 51-year-old female patient from Andhra Pradesh.

The recipient was suffering from dilated cardiomyopathy with severe left ventricle dysfunction and was being treated at M S Ramaiah Narayana Heart Centre.

The donor from Ramanagaram district was admitted to Apollo Hospital on February 22. She suffered an intra-cranial bleed and was declared brain dead on Thursday. Her husband, an agriculturist, consented to organ donation.