Man Receives Double Organ Transplant At Pittsburgh Hospital

Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh is reporting its first-ever dual organ transplant since the facility started transplanting organs in 1987.

The hospital said a 63-year-old man continues to recover after receiving a transplanted heart and kidney on Aug. 30. The surgery took 10 hours.

The man was suffering from cardiomyopathy, or a weak heart. His poor circulation, in turn, damaged his kidneys.

“He’s currently in the hospital ambulating and getting ready to go home,” said surgeon David Dean. “He’s limited at this time just with educational issues, learning his medications and learning all about his new organs.”

Doctors said one advantage to the double-organ transplant is that patients are less likely to reject a transplanted heart if they also receive a kidney at the same time. Researchers aren't sure why that is, but say it may be because the kidneys store immune system cells that would cause a new organ to be rejected.

Two teams of surgeons were responsible for completing the successful transplant.