Wow, check out this man who’ve had a hand transplant after 35 years of non-use on his amputated arm. I am still amazed at the fact the hand transplant itself was successful, I dearly hope for every amputated person to get their arms/legs back through transplants.
When Savage had both hands, part of his right brain responded to his left hand, and a corresponding part of his left brain responded to his right hand. After the amputation, that same part of his left brain would have been sensory-deprived and thus ready to adopt duties of adjacent sensory areas, such as those for the right arm and possibly his face.
Much animal and human research has documented that such neural reorganization begins within hours of limb loss or debilitation…
“It’s remarkable that an original neural pathway for the hand can be reinstated after years and years,” (Vanderbilt University neuroscientist Jon) Kaas says.
3 Responses to After 35 years of Amputation, Hand Transplant still proves Successful!
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The human body is truly a miracle. This goes to show the truth of that statement. I wonder what Dawkins will say about this!
My boyfreind lost his right hand in a horrible carpentry accident on jan.8.09. and is still getting used to his prostethic, he is going to be getting a robotic limb here soon, but knows its just not the same as his real hand, he still has trouble dealing with the loss of his hand, and I was with him one day at his physical therapy appt. and was reading an old magazine and at the bottom of a page this guy was there, I showed it to him immediately and he and I both think it is amazing that medicine and the human body can combine to let someone get almost all the way back to what they used to be…this transplant is a miracle and one day when medicine is better I hope that my boyfreind and every amputee can experience what its like to really have thier limbs back and not just replaced with prosthetics.
Sorry to hear that, I hope your boyfriend and everyone who’s lost an arm or limb to be able to get a FULL hand transplant. Well, it seems our DNA technology is getting better, I don’t think it’s a far-fetched idea out of science fiction.