A woman mauled by a chimp has received a full-face tranplant, showing it off to the world on Thursday.
Charla Nash, who was mauled by a chimpanzee, revealed her new face to the world Thursday through the hospital where she underwent the transplant surgery. The face transplant, the third full face transplant performed in the United States, has been successful thus far.
“I will now be able to do things I once took for granted,” Ms. Nash said in a statement.
“I will be able to smell. I will be able to eat normally. I will no longer be disfigured. I will have lips and will speak clearly once again. I will be able to kiss and hug loved ones.”
Ms. Nash, who lost both her face and her hands in the attack, said she hopes one day to have her hands back.
“Losing the new hands is just a bump in the road of my recovery,” Ms. Nash said. “I believe that one day I’ll have two hands to help me live as a blind person with confidence.”
The transplanted face is not similar to her pre-accident appearance, but it also does not replicate the face of the donor. Facial bones and muscle of the recipient changes the shape of the donor’s tissue, hospital officials said Thursday. Doctors said they are hopeful Ms. Nash will eventually develop more control over her facial muscles over the next several months. She should also be able to breathe through her nose and develop her sense of smell and taste.
The face transplant comes as Ms. Nash was injured by a friend’s 200-pound pet chimpanzee. She lost her hands, lips, nose and eyes, leaving her blind and disfigured after the attack. The animal was later shot and killed by police.
Ms. Nash is not allow in having the procedure performed. There have been 17 other people who have undergone face transplants.
Being the first U.S. first face transplant, doctors explain that face transplants are similar to an organ transplant, where a human donor must be present to donate their organ. But for a successful face transplant, it is more complex, due to the face’s nature of having arteries, veins, muscles, and nerves that must be reconstructed to bring the face back to life. Being able to present symmetrical facial expressions, like smiling or pressing lips together to eat required coordinated motion.
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