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While it may sound like the stuff of science fiction, Chinese surgeons recently saved a young girl's hand by grafting it temporarily to her leg. Nine-year-old Ming Li was run over by a tractor in July, resulting in the severing of her left hand from her arm. Her arm was too badly crushed to reattach the hand at the time, so in order to preserve it for reattachment later, doctors at Zhengzhou Hospital temporarily grafted it to her right leg to keep it alive.
Three months later, once her arm was sufficiently healed, doctors reattached her hand. Ming can move her wrist, and the hand is a healthy pink color, indicating circulation is working, according to Orange News.
While the procedure may sound novel, Dr. Kevin Malone, a hand surgeon at MetroHealth in Cleveland, told AOL Health it isn't. "Temporarily reattaching a hand someplace else is just a way to keep it living," he says. But one shouldn't expect miracles from such a procedure. Any patient getting a hand replanted or receiving a hand transplant cannot expect to regain full function.
Three months later, once her arm was sufficiently healed, doctors reattached her hand. Ming can move her wrist, and the hand is a healthy pink color, indicating circulation is working, according to Orange News.
While the procedure may sound novel, Dr. Kevin Malone, a hand surgeon at MetroHealth in Cleveland, told AOL Health it isn't. "Temporarily reattaching a hand someplace else is just a way to keep it living," he says. But one shouldn't expect miracles from such a procedure. Any patient getting a hand replanted or receiving a hand transplant cannot expect to regain full function.
Surgeons Save Girl's Hand by Grafting It Onto Her Leg
A 9-year-old Chinese girl lost her left hand after being run over by a tractor in July, but miraculously, surgeons were able to save it by grafting it onto her leg for three months
www.foxnews.com
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