Face Transplant Woman Recovering Well, Say Medical Team

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Main Category: Cosmetic Medicine / Plastic Surgery
Article Date: 05 Dec 2005 - 4:00 PDT

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The medical team which carried out a face transplant on a woman in France say she is recovering well, is pleased with her new face and is grateful for the procedure.

When she saw her face in the mirror for the first time she said 'Thank you,' said Professor Bernard Devauchelle in a news conference in Lyon, France.

Devauchelle added that she is speaking and is in good spirits. The patient regained consciousness 24 hours after the operation was over. There were no complications. She is also eating well, he said.

The new face was donated by a multi-organ donating patient who is brain dead - her family agreed to the donation.

The face transplant recipient had had her face severely disfigured after being attacked by dogs.

Face transplants have long been the theme of ethical debates.

The medical team say the patient will have a new face - she will not look like her old self (before the dog attack), neither will she look like the donor.

Written by: Christian Nordqvist
Editor: Medical News Today

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