Groundbreaking surgical technique makes combined face and whole-eye transplantation a reality
An explanation of how an NYU Langone Health surgical team performed the world's first combined face and whole-eye transplantation will be presented at the American College of Surgeons (ACS) Clinical Congress 2024 in San Francisco, California. Their achievement demonstrates the feasibility of transplanting an entire eye alongside a face transplant.
This operation, performed in 2023, showcases the potential for future eye transplant procedures and marks a significant advancement in vascularized composite allotransplantation (VCA). This type of transplantation is particularly challenging since, unlike organ transplants that involve just one type of tissue, like a kidney or heart, VCA involves transplanting a complex combination of different tissues — skin, muscle, blood vessels, nerves, and sometimes bone — all in one piece.
Led by Eduardo D. Rodriguez, MD, FACS, director of the face transplant program at NYU Langone Health, the surgery involved a multidisciplinary team of more than 140 medical professionals. The transplant was performed on Aaron James, a 46-year-old military veteran from Arkansas, who suffered extensive facial and eye injuries from a high-voltage electrical accident.
According to the researchers, the primary goal was to ensure the transplanted eye remained viable, and the innovative techniques used were critical to achieving that outcome. The team focused on optimizing blood flow, a key factor for the long-term success of such a complex transplant.
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