Can human hands be transplanted?

Hand transplantation is a surgical procedure to transfer one or both hands from a brain-dead donor to a suitable recipient. The recipient is a person who has lost one or both hands at the wrist / forearm / arm level.

Has there been a successful hand transplant?

On July 28, 2015, doctors at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia performed the first successful bilateral hand transplant on a child. At the age of 2, Zion Harvey lost his hands and feet to a life-threatening infection. Six years later, at age 8, he had both of his hands replaced in a double hand transplant.

How common are hand transplants?

Hand transplantation is the most common form of modern composite tissue allotransplantation, with 89 cases reported worldwide since 1998. The procedure is a treatment option for complex injuries that leave patients with structural, functional, and aesthetic deficits that cannot be addressed by other means.

Has there ever been a full face transplant?

The first full face transplant performed in the US was done on a construction worker named Dallas Wiens in March 2011. He was burned in an electrical accident in 2008. This operation, performed by Bohdan Pomahač and BWH plastic surgery team, was paid for with the help of the US defense department.

Are nerve transplants possible?

ST LOUIS (MD Consult) – Nerve transplant and nerve transfer surgeries are offering new hope for patients who have had extremities paralyzed or severely damaged by accidents. The surgeries, still relatively new and rare, can replace nerves lost to traumatic injury.

Can you donate your face?

Doctors in the fledgling field of face transplants are making great strides, grafting skin and bone and nerve and muscle to give patients new life and hope. And asking a family to donate a loved one’s face is not like asking for a heart or a lung.

Is there Beard transplant?

A beard transplant is just that: Hair is taken from one part of the body and transplanted to your jawline and wherever you want your beard to grow. That sounds simple enough, but it’s a rather involved process. There are two main approaches a surgeon can take: Follicular unit extraction (FUE).

What happens during a hand transplant?

In a hand transplant, you receive one or two donor hands and a portion of the forearms from a person who has died. Hand transplants are specialized procedures performed in only a few transplant centers worldwide.

Are You a candidate for a hand transplant?

You may require a transplant if you have almost no function of your hands and are not a candidate for alternative or conventional reconstructive surgery. You may be a candidate for reconstructive transplant if you have lost either one hand or both at any level from the hand to the upper arm.

What are reconstructive hand and arm transplants?

Reconstructive hand and arm transplants are for adults who have suffered an amputation or extreme loss of function of their hand and arm due to injury or illness. You may require a transplant if you have almost no function of your hands and are not a candidate for alternative or conventional reconstructive surgery.

How many people have had a hand/arm transplant?

More than 130 patients have received hand and arm transplants at institutions around the world. The longest surviving hand/arm transplant is the first U.S. recipient at 11 years.