What is the limit? None. Medical science continues to develop innovative procedures. Thanks to that, the first complete eye transplant could be performed. A surgical team from NYU Langone Health, an academic medical center at New York University, did it.
This is the first whole eye and partial face transplant in history. It was done to a 46-year-old military veteran. He survived a high-voltage electrical work accident, the center reported.
Revolutionary achievement
«The operation included the transplant of the entire left eye and a part of the face from a single donor. It becomes the first human whole eye transplant in the history of medicine. “It is the only case of combined transplant of this type that has been performed successfully.” This is stated in a statement from the medical center.
The veteran had lost his left eye, nose, lips and much of his face. He even lost his left arm from above the elbow. What happened was that his face accidentally touched a live wire, according to the statement. The operation was carried out on May 27. It lasted about 21 hours and included a team of more than 140 surgeons, nurses and other medical staff.
The center noted that it is still unknown if the patient will regain his sight. He added that the transplanted eye “showed notable signs of health.” For this reason, the surgery can be described as a “revolutionary achievement.” It opens new possibilities for future advances in vision therapies and related medical fields.
Vision recovery
The first complete eye transplant may have more repercussions. “This could show that an eye transplant can restore any form of nerve function or visual signals. Which implies a tremendous advance in medicine. “It would help patients who have suffered the loss of an eye due to trauma or cancer.” It was presented by Dr. Oren Tepper, a specialist in plastic and reconstructive surgery.
