Fifth organ donation procedure in Portoviejo enables two kidney transplants

A coordinated organ-donation procedure in Ecuador’s Portoviejo has given two patients, aged 19 and 29, kidney transplants after doctors confirmed compatibility.

The teams recovered two kidneys and two corneal tissues from a donor diagnosed with brain death. The operation brought together Ecuador’s Ministry of Public Health, the National Institute for Organ, Tissue and Cell Donation and Transplantation, Portoviejo Specialty Hospital and Guayaquil’s Teodoro Maldonado Carbo Specialty Hospital.

For the Portoviejo hospital, the procedure was the fifth of its kind. Its record includes the recovery of kidneys, cardiac structures and corneas for patients waiting for transplants.

The operation involved intensive-care specialists, nurses, surgeons, anesthesiologists and staff trained in organ procurement and anatomical preservation. Intensive-care physician Cristina Montesdeoca said the teams worked under ethical and regulatory protocols set by health authorities.

Transplant surgeon Cristhian Aspiazu said doctors removed the kidneys only after verifying all medical requirements and legal conditions. General surgeon Miriam Manzaba described organ and tissue donation as a way to save and renew the lives of patients with organ failure. The cooperation between hospitals in Manabí and Guayaquil supports rapid responses to compatible donors across Ecuador’s provinces.