Successful Completion of the 'Most Complex' Face Transplant

On Tuesday, a hospital in New York City announced that the most complex and largest face transplant surgery on the face, skull, and neck of a volunteer firefighter who suffered severe burns in 2001 was performed at this hospital. According to the Associated Press, this surgery took place in mid-summer at one of the medical centers affiliated with New York University. The 41-year-old patient, named Patrick Hardison, is still in the hospital but intends to return to his hometown in Mississippi for the Thanksgiving holiday (late November). This surgery has allowed Hardison to use his eye (and thus regain some vision), marking the first step towards returning to a normal life for him. He says, 'I can drive again.' Since the first face transplant surgery was performed in France in 2005, over twenty such surgeries have been conducted in various countries. Dr. Eduardo Rodriguez, who led Hardison's surgical team and recently published an article on face transplant surgery, stated that among the face transplants performed so far, Hardison's surgery involved the largest skin area and the highest amount of transplanted tissues. This transplant covered from the top of his head, meaning the upper part of the skull, down to below his neck. The transplant also included two new ears for Hardison. Dr. Amir Drafshar, one of the directors of the face transplant center at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, believes that Hardison's surgery is a 'historic achievement.' He says, 'This type of transplant has the potential to revolutionize the treatment of patients with severe facial burns.' The surgery lasted 26 hours and will leave no trace on Hardison's face, as the new skin covers the entire skull. The skin donor was a 26-year-old artist and professional cyclist from New York who lost his life in a cycling accident on the streets of New York. Patrick Hardison, 27, a father of three children, suffered severe burns to his head and neck when he entered a house to rescue a woman trapped in flames, and the roof collapsed on him.