Hand transplantation. A future clinical option?
Transplantation of a vascularized limb or its components is defined as composite tissue allotransplantation, and is one of the newest areas in surgery. To date, 24 hands have been transplanted onto 18 recipients. The initial results have been promising, and hand transplantation may become an important procedure for functional restoration of upper limbs. However, the ethical aspects of using chronic immunosuppression for a condition which is not life threatening have been the subject of debate. In this article, we review the field of composite tissue allotransplantation.
Kvernmo
Hebe D
HD
Department of Orthopaedics, Division of Hand and Microsurgery, National Hospital, NO-0027 Oslo, Norway. hebe.kvernmo@rikshospitalet.no
Gorantla
Vijay S
VS
Gonzalez
Ruben N
RN
Breidenbach
Warren C
WC
D004992:Ethics, Medical; D063987:Hand Transplantation; D006801:Humans; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage; D012092:Replantation; D014181:Transplantation Immunology; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents