Five-year-old boy undergoes robotic liver transplantation at Chennai private hospital

Mohamed Rela, Chairman, Rela Hospital, along with the five-year-old patient and his parents, at the press conference on Thursday.
| Photo Credit: B. VELANKANNI RAJ

A five-year-old boy from Haryana, diagnosed with a rare genetic condition, underwent a robotic liver transplantation at Rela Hospital in Chennai last month.

Doctors from the hospital, speaking at a press conference on Thursday (May 22, 2025), said that this was a first-of-its-kind procedure involving a paediatric patient and offered two major benefits — a significantly reduced hospital stay, with the boy being discharged on the seventh day after the procedure instead of the usual 14 to 21 days, and minimal scarring unlike in a conventional transplant procedure.

The boy, son of Saurabh Grover and Nikita Kohli from Karnal in Haryana, was diagnosed with a urea cycle defect, a rare genetic condition in which the body is unable to process urea as it should, leading to a build up of ammonia, which is toxic and can affect the brain and other organs. A liver transplant was necessary, and his mother agreed to donate a portion of her liver, which was also extracted by robotic surgery.

Mohamed Rela, Chairman, Rela Hospital, said that while robotic surgeries had been performed for other conditions, they were not usually used in liver transplantation. However, by using robotic surgery, not only did the child recover quickly, but it was also cost efficient and scar-free. The lack of a large scar, he said, would greatly benefit the patient psychosocially as it would allow him to participate in sports and develop interpersonal relationships like other children his age.

Thanking Dr. Rela and the team at the hospital, Ms. Kohli (who had lost a previous child to the same disorder) said it had been a miracle for the family. She said that until last month, her son had not been able to have a normal diet, with food measured constantly and stress over ammonia levels. “By the eighth day after the transplant he was at home, dancing,” she said.

Rajesh Rajalingam, clinical lead, HPB surgery, and Naresh Shanmugam, senior consultant, paediatric gastroenterology and hepatology, of the Hospital also participated.