Jharkhand Minister Mahto recovers, to be discharged soon: Hospital

Jharkhand Minister for SchoolEducation, Jagarnath Mahto has recovered following a recentbilateral lung transplant and he is set to be discharged soon,a hospital said here on Thursday.

The transplant for the 54-year old minister wasnecessitated due to the severe lung infection caused byCOVID-19 and fibrosis caused by coronaviurs severely damagedhis lungs, MGM Healthcare said in a statement adding, ''theminister has now recovered.'' In October, he was admitted to MGM and after 23 days onExtracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) support, heunderwent a bilateral lung transplant on November 10 lastyear.

''The Minister is set to be discharged soon,'' a hospitalpublic relations official said.

Director of Heart and Lung Transplant Programme, Dr K RBalakrishnan said post surgery, the transplanted lungs werefunctioning well and his ''vital parameters are stable.'' In addition to coronavirus infection, the Minister hadhypertension, diabetes and coronary artery disease ''which madeit a challenging case,'' the hospital said.