On April 18, Shanxi Armed Police Hospital in Taiyuan, capital of Shanxi Province, north China, successfully transplanted a kidney of Shen Xinhui, the father, to his son, Shen Yuewen.

The son, who had been suffering from chronic uraemia, was kept alive by hemodialysis, because an "O"-type kidney source was hard to find. The father decided to donate one of his kidneys to his son, despite his age.

In the past, Chinese doctors believe the maximum age for such an operation is 65 years, though in China the oldest person to have a kidney transplanted is 68 years old.

Moreover, the age difference between the donor and the recipient is also the largest in the country, according to the doctors.

The hospital, which has completed four successful kidney transplant operations between family members, tried all it could to secure a successful operation on the pair.

The doctors first removed the father’s left kidney and transplanted it in the son’s body. About 25 seconds after the kidney transplant was complete, it began working smoothly. Meanwhile, the father seemed to be recovering well.

The operation took four hours and 10 minutes to complete.

(Xinhua 05/16/2001)