Posted on 05/23/2022 11:11:51 PM PDT by Trillian
A man who underwent the world's first double arm and shoulder transplant 16 months ago has made a miraculous recovery and is now able to work out at the gym and hug his grandchildren.
Felix Gretarsson, 49, from Lyon, France was forced to have his arms amputated after he was electrocuted at work in 1998 in Kópavogur, Iceland.
After decades without them, the Icelandic native managed to convince a surgeon to perform a double arm and shoulder transplant in a gruelling 15 hour surgery in January 2021.
The grandfather has shocked surgeons with his incredible progress, and is now able to brush his teeth, walk and throw balls for his dog and hug his kids with his transplanted arms.
Felix has also been able to hug his daughter for the first time since she was a three-month-old baby, and cuddle his grandchildren for the first time.
He said: 'After watching them as little babies crying and being unable to hold them it was indescribable.
'Certain little things like holding my wife and my kids, but also the perception of my hands.
'Just I was just this morning we took our dogs for a walk and I was putting my hand out the window and feeling the wind on my hand, it was very weird moment.
'Being able to scratch without rubbing yourself on some furniture - you don't realise when you lose your hands how often a day you need to touch your nose or your eyes or scratch your head, and now I'm just constantly doing it.'
'It's my 50th birthday next week so I've been going berserk trying to clean the residence for the party in the garden!'
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
Amazing story.
Wow! Just think what this could mean for vets who have lost limbs! Praise the LORD!
Ok, I’ll admit that I’m curious... what sort of donor would be appropriate for a limb transplant? I’d assume that anyone who died of cancer or similar systemic illness would be ruled out. Also probably someone not too old, nor suffering any sort of vascular or cardiovascular illness that might damage veins or arteries. I don’t know. Perhaps anyone person who died in motorcycle accident or a gunshot wound to the head?
That’s pretty fantastic. A problem might arise however, if the ‘donor’ were a fellon. Suddenly, you have a criminal’s fingerprints.
“But your Honour, I only got these hands six months ago.”
Maybe there is hope for the South Carolina woman who lost both her arms (up to the shoulder) in a pit bull attack a month or so back.
She is relatively young (early 50s); a wife, mother, and grandmother.
News reports tell of her tremendous depression and the need to sedate her.
I was rather wondering the same thing myself.
He’s a grandfather at age 49?
Sure. Have a child at 20, 20 years later that child gets pregenant when he’s 40.
Notice I said said child and not girl, since we now know boys can get pregnant too.
How horrible. That poor woman. Prayers for her.
Wow! Just think what this could mean for vets who have lost limbs! Praise the LORD!
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THIS
That’s kind of the plot of Mad Love, with Peter Lorre, where a pianist gets a hand transplant from a executed knife thrower/murderer! The pianist is later accused of murder.
I have a nephew who is very very OCD. It affects his day to day life in so many different ways. He had grown his hair out long for a few years, and then recently decided to have it cut short and clean cut again. The hair dresser took off an 18” ponytail. He doesn’t want it to be donated or thrown in the trash, because he’s afraid someone will turn it into a wig, and then commit a crime for which he will be blamed. It’s possible, but extremely unlikely. This is just one example of how his OCD disrupts his life. He just turned 40. I don’t think he can be helped at this point. It’s very hard on his family.
“’I’m not putting any serious weight on, I’m trying to put on muscles but at the same time growing nerves,’ he said.”
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Amazing story.
If I recall, it used to be transplants of certain organs could be made to take without rejection, but limbs and anything with musculature would not be useful, because they could not connect nerves and get them to grow together functionally.
This article suggests they are beyond that and I was hoping they would explain how but it never delved into it.
Very cool to see what progress is being made in medicine though
Indeed. An Amazing story.
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