In a groundbreaking advancement for Nigeria’s medical landscape, the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital (UMTH) has successfully conducted its second living-donor kidney transplant, marking a pivotal return to high-level renal care after a 15-year hiatus.
This landmark feat was announced during a press briefing held in Maiduguri on Wednesday, where Professor Ahmed Ahidjo, the hospital’s Chief Medical Director, hailed the achievement as a major leap for specialized healthcare in northern Nigeria.
“This is not the first time UMTH is doing the transplant. The first time was in August 2010. Now, the hospital is back with full force to resume the exercise,” Professor Ahidjo declared.
With 20 more patients already admitted and awaiting surgery, UMTH is positioning itself as a hub for affordable, advanced renal care in West Africa. Professor Ahidjo passionately appealed for financial support from donors to assist indigent patients in dire need of the life-saving procedure.
Despite being a federal institution offering free services, UMTH has made efforts to cushion costs. Dialysis, typically priced around $1,000 in other regions, has been subsidized to ₦12,000 (less than $8) at the facility.
“Our aim is to make kidney transplants one of the cheapest in West Africa,” Ahidjo said, highlighting that UMTH currently boasts four modern, fully equipped theatre rooms dedicated to kidney transplants and an 85-bed capacity to accommodate patients.
The CMD expressed appreciation to TETFUND for its instrumental support in equipping the hospital and acknowledged Borno State Governor, Prof. Babagana Zulum, for donating ₦50 million toward critical research on the root causes of kidney-related diseases in the North-East.
Preliminary research links diabetes, hypertension, and dehydration to the rising cases of kidney diseases in the region, although more detailed findings are still pending from laboratory analyses.
As UMTH forges ahead, its renewed focus on capacity building, affordability, and research places it at the forefront of Nigeria’s battle against chronic kidney diseases and affirms its growing role in transforming healthcare access in underserved regions.
