US: Doctors in Florida have transplanted eight organs - a world first - into an Italian baby girl, 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.
Mr 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.
"In order to treat the child, one must replace all of these abdominal organs," said Dr Andreas Tzakis, the lead surgeon.
The child now weighs about 13 lbs and is fed through a tube, but is out of intensive care, Dr Tzakis said. The operation was performed on January 31st and she is expected to remain in Miami for several more weeks.
The hospital has performed several seven-organ transplants, Dr Tzakis said. One of them was on another baby Italian girl, Eugenia Borgo, in 1997. The girl is attending school and healthy. - (AP)