Painter to Hold Brushes Again After a 12-Hour Long Surgery: Delhi's First Ever Bilateral Hand Transplant

08 March,2024

• Delhi witnessed its first successful bilateral hand transplant surgery when a 45-year-old painter got his hands back.
• Raj Kumar lost both his hands when he was run over by a train while crossing the railway line in Nangloi in 2020. His prosthetic trial was unsuccessful, and a transplant was his only option.
• Meena Mehta came as an angel in his life. She worked as an administrative head at a South Delhi school and was declared brain dead. It was her last wish to help people by donating her organs after death.
• The surgery was performed on January 19, 2024, at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital and took 12 hours to complete. A team of 11 doctors, led by Dr. Mahesh Mangal (Chairman—Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery) and Dr. Swaroop Singh Gambhir (Senior Consultant—Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery), was involved. 
• The team did a detailed examination and investigation, following all the transplant protocols. The first-of-its-kind surgery involved carefully reattaching different components, including bones, tendons, muscles, arteries, veins, nerves, and skin.
• "Once we selected the patient and did the blood match, we got to know he was the fit candidate for the patient. We took the hands, and we fixed the bones first with plates and screws, and we fixed the muscles and then artery and the nerve," said Dr Gambhir.
• Sir Ganga Ram Hospital became the first ever hospital in North India to gain approval to perform hand transplant surgeries.
• Raj Kumar's recovery was quick (within six weeks), and he is doing well now. The procedure brought hope to a lot of people who lost their limbs in fire, accident, etc. 
• People like Meena are an inspiration for many. She has donated her kidneys, liver, cornea, and hands. 

Source: Times of India