The UAE plans to expand its organ transplant programme to include procedures involving the face, hands, arms, uterus and intestine, as part of the next phase of the country’s transplant services.
The Ministry of Health and Prevention said future plans under the National Programme for Donation and Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues, known as Hayat, include widening the types of organs and tissues that can be donated and transplanted.
Among the planned procedures are intestine and uterus transplants, as well as what are known as vascularised composite tissue transplants. These can involve complex body parts such as the face, hands and arms.
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The expansion would take the UAE’s transplant programme into highly specialised areas that require several medical teams and careful coordination before, during and after surgery.
Tissue donation planned
The Hayat programme also plans to expand tissue donation to include corneas, bones, skin and heart valves.
Another area being developed is donation after circulatory death, or DCD. This refers to organ donation after a person’s heart and blood circulation have permanently stopped.
The Ministry said that expanding these pathways could help increase the availability of organs and tissues for patients who need life-saving or life-changing treatment.
The plans form part of wider efforts to strengthen organ donation within the UAE healthcare system.
Source: Khaleej Times