Breakthrough in the first total eye transplant

AFP reported yesterday that a team of surgeons at NYU Langone Health in New York City (USA) performed the world's first total eye transplant. The surgery involved removing the entire left eye of a donor, including the eyeball, blood vessels and optic nerve, and transplanting those parts to patient Aaron James (46 years old) in Arkansas (USA).

Mr. Aaron James before surgery (inset) and with Dr. Eduardo Rodriguez after his latest surgery

James was electrocuted with 7,200 volts in June 2021, losing his left eye, left arm above the elbow, nose and lips, front teeth, left cheek area and chin, but his right eye remained intact. James was then taken to NYU Langone Health and underwent an eye and face transplant on May 27, 2023.

'The Beginning'

As of yesterday, AFP quoted ophthalmologist Vaidehi Dedania of NYU Langone Health as saying that James's transplanted left eye looked very healthy and had a good blood supply, although James still could not see with that eye. "But we have a lot of hope," Ms. Dedania emphasized.

James said he can now "smell again, eat again, taste food" and "kiss my wife for the first time in a year and a half." He also said he wants more people to know about his surgery, especially the eye transplant. "Even if it doesn't work for me, it's a start, so maybe Dr. Eduardo Rodriguez can figure out something different to do next time," James said.

Dr. Rodriguez led the face and eye transplant for Mr. James. "We are not claiming that we will restore vision. But I am sure that we are one step closer," Mr. Rodriguez emphasized, according to AP.

While it is too early to know whether James will be able to see with his new left eye, the surgery has been hailed by many scientists. "The eye transplant at NYU Langone represents a significant moment in our joint research to restore vision and bring hope to countless individuals around the world," said Dr. Daniel Pelaez of the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute at the University of Miami.

Optic nerve regeneration

Similarly, Kia Washington, professor of surgery at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus (USA), also praised the above surgery, saying that achieving the goal of restoring vision may involve applying other advanced methods, including gene therapy that exploits the optic nerve's intrinsic healing ability, according to AFP.

In addition, Dr. Jeffrey Goldberg at the Byers Eye Institute at Stanford University (USA) said: "We are making great progress in treatments to promote optic nerve regeneration that can accompany eye transplantation."

According to AP, Mr. James's face transplant was Dr. Rodriguez's fifth and Mr. James's was the 19th person in the United States to receive a face transplant, according to AP. The world's first partial face transplant was performed on a French woman named Isabelle Dinoire in November 2005 at a hospital in France.

Recently, world medicine is said to have had initial success in transplanting pig hearts into humans. AFP reported on September 24 that a 58-year-old man became the second patient in the world to receive a pig heart transplant, after the first successful case in January 2022. The first and second patients lived about 2 months and 6 weeks, respectively, after receiving pig hearts.

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