Surgeons carry out first European keyhole kidney transplant

Surgeons at the Royal Liverpool Hospital have carried out a kidney transplant using keyhole surgery, the BBC reported.

It is the first time the procedure has been performed in Europe.

The technique, originally developed in India, offers patients the chance of a much faster recovery after the operation.

Normally a kidney transplant would involve serious open surgery and a sizeable incision to perform the transplant.

The team at the Royal Liverpool used keyhole surgery to implant the donor kidney through an incision of just 6cm (2in).

A smaller incision is a lot less invasive for the patient and heals more quickly.

The technique was developed by Prof Pranjal Modi at the Institute of Kidney Diseases and Research Centre in Ahmedabad.

He said: "It is tremendously beneficial to the patient. I talk one-to-one to all the patients and they are so happy.

"Their outcomes are so good that I am encouraged to do it further and further."

Brian Blanchfield, a company director, had spent years living with a failing kidney before his sister Pam donated one of hers.

He was up and about just four days after the operation.

He told the BBC: "I'm feeling good.

"They said I'd be the first one to do it, and the interesting thing was they asked me where I wanted the kidney to go.

"So they went through my appendix scar, as there was already a cut line there."