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| Remember when Luke got his hand chopped off and all they had to do to fix it was robotically attach a prosthetic hand? Yeah. That was awesome. |
Well, in today's story, UCLA did something just as awesome - a hand transplant. It was only the thirteenth in the US and only four hospitals in the nation do it. Okay, when I say it like that it doesn't sound that impressive, but think about it - they attached a whole new, live, real hand from a donor to a recipient, who had lost her hand five years before. It took 17 people and 14.5 hours, and they're using the surgery and recovery for data that can apply to several different things, including keeping the body from rejecting it, where in the brain controls what hand movements, etc.
I would be especially interested to hear how function in the hand goes - they mention reattaching muscles and vessels and whatnot, but what about nerves? Will they be able to feel the hand? Feel things WITH the hand? I don't know, but I'm psyched about finding out.
-Miss Mouse
References and Links:
"Luke, I Am Your Father... but I'm Not Donating My Hand to You":
http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/574161/
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