Sri Lanka achieved the honour of performing the first-ever successful heart transplant at the Kandy Teaching Hospital on Friday (7).

The heart belonged to a 21-year-old youth, brain-dead from a massive head injury, and was transplanted in the body of a female in her 30’s suffering from cardiomyopathy.

A team of doctors that included 3 heart surgeons, a transplant surgeon, a cardiologist and many other coordinators and support staff conducted the surgery.

Reports said the process began at 7 P.M. on July 7 when Dr. Jagathi Perera, Consultant Cardiothoracic Anesthetist anaesthetized the recipient.

Dr. Anil Abeywickrama, Consultant Cardiac Surgeon at the Kandy Teaching Hospital, then harvested the heart.   

Cardiologist Sunethra Irugalbadaara looked after the heart before cardiac surgeons Mudhitha Lansakara and Gnanakaanthan transplanted it.

The two kidneys and the liver belonging to the donor were also harvested at the occasion By Dr. P.K. Harischandra, a veteran transplant surgeon who pioneered cadaver renal transplants in Sri Lanka.