They perform hand transplants on those who have not lost them.

organ transplant They are more and more amazing. If only 50 years ago heart transplant It was something incredibly new, today it is in the order of things. But the fact is that it was also possible to transplant skin on the faceuterus with the ability to bear and even Arms. The first double hand transplant this was held in 2015. Since then, several more have been performed, but never on a patient who has not actually lost his own arms. This happened for the first time in England, where 48 year old man with scleroderma was transplanted to solve mobility problems and chronic pain what caused this disease.

The intervention described in BBC, was a complete success. After a hand transplant, this man forgot about the pain and, although he has not yet regained full mobility, can return to perform simple gestures. For example, you are glad that you were able to do something as simple as pet your dog.

If all goes well and he continues to recover, the patient even hopes to return to work as roofer. This is something that in the situation in which he was, he already considered unthinkable. But this is the power of science to achieve things that seem impossible, although sometimes it takes years.

Unconventional hand transplant

Steve Gallagher He was not the first patient to receive double hand transplant. The first was an 8-year-old American boy who lost both arms to an infection six years ago. However, the case of this Englishman is unique for several reasons.

First, because he is the first person to receive donated hands from a corpse before losing their own. The second reason is related, since this is the first patient with scleroderma receive an ARM TRANSFER. It is scleroderma that is the reason that, without losing them, it is as if I did not have them. Or even worse. But what is this disease?

Scleroderma: another attack on the immune system

Scleroderma belongs to a heterogeneous set autoimmune fibrosing connective tissue diseases. Being an autoimmune disease means that the immune system becomes confused and instead of attacking threats such as pathogens, attacks the body. As to the fact that it causes fibrosis of the connective tissue, it refers to the fact that said tissue overgrows. Result some scars which accumulate by hardening structures such as the skin, blood vessels, muscles, or some internal organs.

If the latter occurs, we usually talk about systemic scleroderma. And this is precisely the case of Gallagher, who was diagnosed thirteen years ago. Since then, his hands have suffered the most. Gradually, the skin and joints harden, causing excruciating pain. Also, they compress to stiffness in the form of fists. There was no possible cure, so the doctors who treated him thought he might be a candidate for a double hand transplant.

Among other things, the intervention included Andrew Hartat Canniesburn Plastic Surgery in Glasgow, and Simon Kayteaching hospitals in Leeds. The latter also participated in the first double hand transplant in the United Kingdom in 2016.

The operation was carried out in December 2021 and lasted for a total twelve o’clock. It was attended 30 medical workerswhich contributed to the successful completion of the entire process.

Logically, there is still a lot of rehabilitation left, but the most important thing is that the patient is already you can live without pain. It will take some time to move your arms freely again, but at least you will feel that you are no longer so dependent on other people. Without a doubt, this is a great start, which shows that indeed transplants, which used to seem like science fiction, are now a reality. And they can make life better for people whose everyday life has become unbearable.