Nov 08, Anuradhapura: The main state hospital in Anuradhapura, the capital city of Sri Lanka's North Central Province where a high incidence of kidney disease is prevailing, has improved its services by offering Living Donor Kidney Transplantation for renally impaired patients.

The hospital announced that a transplant of a kidney of a live donor to a patient with acute renal failure had been performed successfully on November 05 for the first time in the hospital which is situated in the heart of an area affected by a severe spread of renal diseases.

The operation was conducted by specialist surgeon Charith Weerasinghe using Hand Assisted Laparoscopic Technique which offers a less invasive way to donate a kidney and minimizes the difficulties to the donor.

The hospital earlier conducted several transplants of kidneys from deceased organ donors.

The government has taken steps to set up a renal unit and a research unit at the Anuradhapura General Hospital.

According to the Ministry of Health, around 15 percent of the population the North Central Province, most of them paddy farmers is affected by chronic kidney diseases (CKD).

A recent study has suggested metals, mainly cadmium and arsenic present in fertilizer and pesticides respectively, are to be blamed for the high prevalence of CKD in the major paddy farming area of the country.

According to Health Ministry statistics, 1,599 kidney patients had died in the North Central Province during the past seven years. Male farmers who spend most of the time in the paddy fields are the most affected, statistics have shown.