“A new lease on life” … a rare double transplant procedure to give a man a new face and condemnation

Doctors say that a 22-year-old man, who suffered severe burns in a car accident, is recovering well after undergoing a rare face and hands transplant.

Nearly six months after a rare face and hand transplant, Joe Demio learns how to smile, pinch and apply pressure.Demiu, from New Jersey, performed the operation last August, two years after he suffered severe burns in a car accident, where he slept while driving, after working on a night shift, and his car hit a sidewalk and turned over and caught fire. Then a passing driver, who witnessed the accident, pulled him out of the burning wreck.

But the young man’s injuries were so severe that he was forced to spend months in a medical coma and underwent 20 reconstructions and multiple skin grafts to treat extensive third-degree burns.

Once it became clear that conventional surgeries could not help him regain full vision or use of his hands, Demio’s medical team, made up of more than 140 people, began preparing for the risky transplant, in early 2019.

Experts say the surgery at NYU Langone Health appears to have been a success, but they caution that it will take some time to confirm.

Doctors amputated both of Demio’s hands, replaced them in the middle of the forearm and tied nerves, blood vessels, and 21 tendons with thin sutures.
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Doctors have also transplanted the young man’s entire face, including the forehead, eyebrows, nose, eyelids, lips, ears and underlying facial bones.

Around the world, surgeons have performed at least 18 face transplants and 35 hand transplants, according to the United Network for Organ Sharing, or UNOS, which oversees the US organ transplant system.

“So far, Demio has not shown any signs of rejecting his new face or hands,” said Dr. Eduardo Rodriguez, who led the medical team of more than 140 people.

Since leaving the hospital last November, Demio has been undergoing intensive rehabilitation, devoting daily hours to physical, occupational and speech rehabilitation.

During a recent session, he practiced raising his eyebrows, opening and closing his eyes, curling his mouth, raising his thumb up and whistling. Demiu can sense his new forehead and hands getting cold, and he often reaches out to push his long hair off his face.

Demi, who lives with his parents, is now able to dress and eat himself. He plays billiards and walks with his dog, Buster.

Source: medicalxpress