Transplant first

DOCTORS have transplanted eight organs — a world first — into an Italian baby, who is in good condition six weeks after the operation.

Alessia Di Matteo, now seven months old, received a new liver, stomach, pancreas, small intestine, large intestine, spleen and two kidneys during a 12-hour operation.

Doctors at the University of Miami-Jackson Memorial Medical Centre said the surgery was the world’s first eight-organ transplant.

Joel Newman, spokesman for United Network for Organ Sharing, cautioned that it was difficult to confirm that the hospital had set a record because other facilities record the stomach and intestine as one organ.

Alessia, of Genoa, Italy, was born with congenital smooth muscle disorder, which prevented normal function of her stomach, intestines and kidneys. The condition is fatal if left untreated.