A third face transplant has successfully been carried out in Spain, this time at the Hospital Universitario de la Vall d’Hebrón in Barcelona.
The procedure lasted 24 hours and involved a team of thirty people. The patient, whose identity is being withheld at the request of the family, is said to be recovering satisfactorily.
The first face transplant in Spain was carried out in August 2009 at the Hospital La Fe in Valencia under the direction of surgeon Pedro Cavadas. It was the first operation in the world to include the jaw and the tongue.
The second face transplant took place at the Hospital Virgen del Rocío in January 2010 , lasted 30 hours and involved a team of 23 specialists.
The Hospital Universitario de la Vall d’Hebrón was the third medical centre to be approved by the Comisión de Trasplantes del Consejo Interterritorial del Sistema Nacional de Salud to carry out such operations and they have been looking for a suitable donor since last August.
This type of operation is still in its infancy and is a very complicated procedure involving the connection of muscle, skin, nerves and blood vessels.