The first full face transplant was recently performed in the U.S. by a team of more than 30 doctors and other providers led by plastic surgeon Dr. Bohdan Pomahac at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. The recipient, a 25-year-old construction worker from Texas, was disfigured in a power line accident.
The man received a new nose, lips, skin, muscle and nerves from an unidentified donor, and the operation was paid for by the U.S. military, which wants to use knowledge gained from the procedure to help soldiers with severe facial wounds.
According to Dr. Pomahac, the man will not resemble “either what he used to be or the donor. The tissues are really molded on a new person.”
The 15-hour operation was not able to restore the man’s sight, and some nerves were so badly damaged from his injury that he will probably have only partial sensation on his left cheek and left forehead, the surgeon said.
About a dozen face transplants have been done worldwide, in the U.S., France, Spain and China. This was the third in the U.S. — the first two performed in this country were partial transplants.
While face transplants are rare, there are more common facial reconstructive surgery procedures for conditions such as ptosis, Graces Disease, thyroid and orbital tumors.
For the month of June – designated ‘national safety month’ – medical societies like the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, The American Society for Reconstructive Microsurgery, and others, have collaborated to offer some safety tips to prevent injuries stemming from lawnmower use. 