In three months, she will require a reassessment of the tendons
A team of plastic surgeons at SPARSH Hospital in Yeshwanthpur have successfully reattached the completely amputated left hand of a 29-year-old woman. The woman, who worked in a rubber tube cutting factory in Peenya, Bengaluru, suffered the injury while operating a heavy sharp cutting machine blade.The surgical team that performed the replantation surgery included Plastic surgeons Dr Karthik Vishwanath and Dr Roshan Shetty.
The patient was brought to SPARSH in an emergency condition two hours after the injury with significant loss of blood. The amputated hand was brought in a polythene cover placed in an ice box. The emergency team stabilised her in the emergency room, while the plastic surgeons started working on the amputated part.
The doctors assessed its viability for reattachment and then segregated the structures anatomically. The injury occurred at the wrist level from a sharp blade. They decided to proceed with a replantation surgery which took about five hours to complete. The team of plastic surgeons repaired individual tendons, major arteries, veins, nerves and skin, while the orthopaedic team stabilised the wrist with K-wires(a type of stabilisation wire).
Post-surgery, she developed blood clots in the blood vessels and had to undergo exploration, thrombectomy, and vein graft. The reattached hand survived, and thereafter, it showed a flicker of finger movements. The patient was discharged and she has been visiting the hospital for regular follow-ups.
In three months, she will require a reassessment of the tendons and a secondary procedure to improve the function and strength of the hand. She will also require extended physiotherapy to optimise the hand’s function.
