Toronto Hospital Just Leveled Up the Heart Game with a Whole New Vibe 💖🇨🇦
Toronto hospital performs Canada’s first heart transplant using a heart that stopped beating: UHN. Toronto General Hospital just did a thing - Canada's first heart transplant using a heart that stopped beating! Dr. Rabi and the team are out here changing the game. This could mean a bigger pool of
TL:DR
Toronto General Hospital just did a thing - Canada's first heart transplant using a heart that stopped beating! Dr. Rabi and the team are out here changing the game. This could mean a bigger pool of hearts for those who need 'em. One patient is already vibin' after getting the new heart!
The Deets
Okay, so listen up, fam! Toronto General Hospital just pulled off something major - they did Canada's FIRST EVER heart transplant using a heart from someone who had their heart stop beating. Like, for real.
Dr. Seyed Alireza Rabi and Dr. Michael McDonald, along with a whole squad of medical pros, led the charge. They used this thing called "donation after death by circulatory criteria" (DCC) protocol. Basically, it means they can now use hearts from people who aren't gonna recover neurologically, but don't fit the usual criteria for brain death. It involves transplanting hearts from patients who have no chance of neurological recovery but do not meet the criteria for brain death. Life support is withdrawn, and after the heart stops beating and death is confirmed, organs are recovered promptly.
Why is this a big deal? Well, Dr. Rabi said heart transplants are the ONLY cure for some gnarly heart problems. And a lot of people don't even make it onto the transplant list. This DCC thing could boost the heart donor pool by like, 30 percent. That's HUGE!
At the end of last year, we had 155 adults and 29 kids in Canada just straight up waiting for a heart. Thankfully, the first person to get one of these DCC hearts is recovering well. W!
Shoutout to the Ontario government and the Trillium Gift of Life Network for backing this kind of innovation. This is how we save lives, y'all!
Abbreviations Glossary
| Abbreviation | Full Form |
|---|---|
| Vibin' | Doing well, feeling good. |
| Fam | A close group of friends/supporters. |
| Squad | A group of people. |
| Gnarly | Very bad, difficult, or dangerous. |
| W | Win. |