Dallas Wiens
Encyclopedia
Dallas Wiens is the first United States recipient of a full face transplant
, performed at the Brigham and Women's Hospital
during the week of March 14, 2011. It was the first such operation in United States and the third in the world.
when it made contact with a high-voltage wire. Transported by helicopter to Parkland Memorial Hospital
, surgeons spent 36 hours over two days working to save Wiens’ life.
In March 2011, a transplant team of more than 30 doctors, including eight surgeons and doctors and nurses from multiple disciplines, led by MUDr. Bohdan Pomahač
, performed a full face transplant, at Brigham and Women's Hospital
in Boston. It took 15 hours. Wiens' sight couldn't be recovered but he has been able to talk on the phone and smell. This operation was paid for with the help of the US defense department. They hope to learn from this procedure and use what they learn to help soldiers suffering from facial injuries. Wiens had no insurance when he was injured. The new federal health care law allowed him to get insurance coverage under his father's plan.
Wiens has undergone about two dozen operations since the accident in 2008. He will need more surgery in the future.
Face transplant
A face transplant is a still-experimental procedure to replace all or part of a person's face. The world's first full face transplant was completed in Spain in 2010.-Beneficiaries of face transplant:...
, performed at the Brigham and Women's Hospital
Brigham and Women's Hospital
Brigham and Women's Hospital is the largest hospital of the Longwood Medical and Academic Area in Boston, Massachusetts. It is directly adjacent to Harvard Medical School of which it is the second largest teaching affiliate with 793 beds...
during the week of March 14, 2011. It was the first such operation in United States and the third in the world.
Facial disfigurement
Wiens was critically burned by a high voltage wire on November 13, 2008, when he was painting Ridglea Baptist Church in Fort Worth. He was standing inside the cherry pickerCherry picker
A cherry picker , is a type of aerial work platform that consists of a platform or bucket at the end of a hydraulic lifting system.- Design :...
when it made contact with a high-voltage wire. Transported by helicopter to Parkland Memorial Hospital
Parkland Memorial Hospital
Parkland Memorial Hospital is a hospital located at 5201 Harry Hines Boulevard, just west of Oak Lawn in Dallas, Texas . It is the main hospital of the Dallas County Hospital District and serves as Dallas County's public hospital.- History :The original hospital opened in 1894 in a wooden...
, surgeons spent 36 hours over two days working to save Wiens’ life.
Recovery
Wiens was left permanently blind and without lips, a nose or eyebrows. Doctors told the family that Wiens likely would be paralyzed from the neck down and would never speak or produce enough saliva to eat solid food. They put him in medically-induced coma for 3 months. After awakening, he made unprecedented progress and left the hospital in spring 2009. In June 2010 he started walking.In March 2011, a transplant team of more than 30 doctors, including eight surgeons and doctors and nurses from multiple disciplines, led by MUDr. Bohdan Pomahač
Bohdan Pomahač
Bohdan Pomahač is the plastic surgeon who led the team that performed the first full face transplant in the United States.-Biography:Pomahač's parents were a chemical engineer and a school teacher...
, performed a full face transplant, at Brigham and Women's Hospital
Brigham and Women's Hospital
Brigham and Women's Hospital is the largest hospital of the Longwood Medical and Academic Area in Boston, Massachusetts. It is directly adjacent to Harvard Medical School of which it is the second largest teaching affiliate with 793 beds...
in Boston. It took 15 hours. Wiens' sight couldn't be recovered but he has been able to talk on the phone and smell. This operation was paid for with the help of the US defense department. They hope to learn from this procedure and use what they learn to help soldiers suffering from facial injuries. Wiens had no insurance when he was injured. The new federal health care law allowed him to get insurance coverage under his father's plan.
Wiens has undergone about two dozen operations since the accident in 2008. He will need more surgery in the future.