Dallas Wiens
| Dallas Wiens | |
|---|---|
| Born | May 6, 1985 Fort Worth, Texas |
| Occupation | construction worker |
| Known for | first full face transplant in the US |
Dallas Wiens (born May 6, 1985) 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.[1] It was the first such operation in United States and the third[2] in the world.[3]
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Facial disfigurement [edit]
Wiens was critically burned by a high voltage wire on November 13, 2008, when he was painting Ridglea Baptist Church in Fort Worth.[4] He was standing inside the cherry picker when his forehead made contact with a high-voltage wire.[5][6] Transported by helicopter to Parkland Memorial Hospital, surgeons spent 36 hours over two days working to save Wiens’ life.
Recovery [edit]
Wiens was left permanently blind and without lips, a nose or eyebrows.[7] 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 May 2010 he started walking.[8]
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 has regained his sense of smell.[9] 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.[7][10]
Wiens has undergone about two dozen operations since the accident in 2008.[11] He will need more surgery in the future.
Public appearance [edit]
On May 9, 2011, Wiens made his first public appearance wearing dark sunglasses. Dallas said that his young daughter told him "Daddy, you're so handsome.", when she saw him after the operation.[1] He also said; (regarding his new face) "It feels as if it has become my own."[3]
Personal life [edit]
In an online MSN NBC News article, by Elvira Sakmari and Scott Gordon of NBCDFW.com, it was stated that on Saturday 30 March, 2013, Weins married fellow Parkland Hospital burn patient Jamie Nash of Garland, Texas, who he met at a Parkland Hospital burn victims support group. They married at the same church where Weins had been burned less than four-and-a-half years earlier. Nash had received burns to her legs, back, and hands from a 2010 car accident in Ennis, Texas. The couple's injuries are such that they can do things for one another which individually they could not.[12]
See also [edit]
References [edit]
- ^ a b Contreras, Russell (2011-05-09). "Full face transplant patient makes 1st appearance". USA Today. Retrieved 2011-05-10.
- ^ "Miracle Transplant: Wearing the Face of a Dead Man
- ^ a b MacAskill, Ewen (2011-05-09). "US man Dallas Wiens shows result of America's first full face transplant". The Guardian (London). Retrieved 2011-05-11.
- ^ Fisher, Janon (2011-04-22). "A face transplant recipient gets restraining order against U.K. company". Adweek. Retrieved 2011-05-10.
- ^ Aasen, Eric (2011-05-09). "Full-face transplant recipient discusses his life-changing surgery". Retrieved 2011-05-11.
- ^ Khatchadourian, Raffi (2012-02-13). "Transfiguration: How Dallas Wiens Found a New Face". The New Yorker.
- ^ a b Marchione, Marilynn; Russell Contreras. "Texas man gets first full face transplant in US". Retrieved 2011-05-11.
- ^ "Face transplant candidate Dallas Wiens credits God". Christian Telegraph. 2010-09-11. Retrieved 2011-05-11.
- ^ "Boston hospital performs full face transplant". USA Today. 21 March 2011. Retrieved 10 May 2011.
- ^ Fayetteville Observer article Full-face transplant a first in U.S.; military helps pay for operation
- ^ "Face transplant: Dallas Wiens hails regained smell". BBC News. 2011-05-09. Retrieved 2011-05-11.
- ^ http://usnews.nbcnews.com/news/2013/03/30/17533222-full-face-transplant-recipient-marries-woman-he-met-in-burn-support-group?lite
