Mumbai: 15-year-old Goregaon girl becomes first in the world to successfully undergo hand transplant at shoulder level

This teenager has become the youngest recipient in Asia and the first globally to undergo a shoulder-level limb transplant successfully.

In a historic set of events, a 15-year-old girl from Goregaon in Mumbai, who lost her right hand due to electrocution in 2022, has received a new hand. This teenager has become the youngest recipient in Asia and the first globally to undergo a shoulder-level limb transplant successfully.

The hand transplant represents the 12th successful hand transplant conducted at Gleneagles Hospital, a leading transplant facility in Mumbai and Western India.

Notably, this is the first time in India that a hand transplant was performed using the organ of a 9-year-old brain-dead donor from Surat, providing this teenager with an incredible gift.

The 12-hour surgery was skillfully carried out by Dr. Nilesh G. Satbhai, head of Plastic, Hand and Reconstructive Microsurgery at Gleneagles Hospitals in Parel, Mumbai, and his team.

After having her right arm amputated just below the shoulder level, the recipient is now on track to recover and regain normal movements and function of her new arm. The young girl is thrilled about her new opportunity and eagerly anticipates returning to school.

Two years ago, 13-year-old Anamta Ahmad travelled to her hometown of Aligarh in Uttar Pradesh for a vacation. While playing with her cousins, she accidentally touched an 11KV wire on the terrace, resulting in a severe electric shock that caused significant burns. Her right hand developed gangrene and had to be amputated thrice. Her left arm was also severely injured with major wounds and poor function.

Since that tragic incident, Anamta and her family did not lose hope.

Eventually, Anamta found the strength within herself to confront the difficult truth and come to terms with the necessity of restarting her life and relearning various skills. Demonstrating remarkable fortitude, she dedicated herself to personal growth. She refused to take assistance from her family members chose to be self-reliant and tackled all her daily responsibilities independently. Rather than succumbing to despair, she maintained an optimistic outlook, returned to school without pausing her education, learned to write with her left hand, and scored 92% (the highest in five subjects) in her Class 10 examinations. She excelled in Hindi at her school with an impressive score of 98 in May 2024. Anamta's path after electrocution has been characterized by firm determination and resilience instead of giving up on her dreams.

The family kept searching for options and solutions for this difficult situation they were facing. They soon realised that Hand Transplantation was the only suitable solution for this complex problem. They visited multiple hospitals across India, and also a few centers in Singapore and Thailand. They were refused for Hand transplantation at all these centers as the amputation was at a very high level. Finally, they came to Gleneagles Hospital, Mumbai, and consulted Dr. Satbhai.

Anamta underwent a detailed preoperative workup and was listed for Hand Transplantation. After waiting for more than an year, they got an alert about the availability of a suitable hand donor. Anamta and her family's joy knew no bounds. The family rejoiced as Anamta's life was going to change for the better.

Dr Nilesh G. Satbhai, head Of Department- Plastic, Hand, Reconstructive Microsurgery and Transplantation, Gleneagles Hospitals, Parel, Mumbai said, "We were informed by the local state authorities, that a 9-year-old girl from Surat, who was suffering from a brain tumor, had been declared brain dead. The family was counseled by a local NGO about hand donation. The parents generously consented to the donation, and arrangements were promptly organized to transfer the organ to Gleneagles Hospitals."

Dr Satbhai added, "Hand Transplantation is a complex procedure which requires detailed assessment of the recipient. The primary injury often results in severe scarring of the skin, blood vessels and nerves. We need to assess this beforehand and plan accordingly. In transplantation at higher levels, bony fixation is a challenge as well. In Anamta's case, as the injury was almost at shoulder level, we had to repair the blood vessels and nerves at a very high level under the clavicle (collar bone). This can be technically very challenging. The most important factor is to restore the circulation of the donor hands within 6 hours, so that it survives and functions well, without causing any risk to the recipient. The surgery took almost 12 hours and required great teamwork of surgeons, anesthesiologists, immunologists, and intensive care physicians. The patient is recovering well and is still in the ICU for observation. She will be on life-long immunosuppression. Her physiotherapy and rehabilitation will start soon. It usually takes 9-12 months for functional recovery after such proximal transplants."

"The loss of my daughter's right hand was a heart-wrenching experience not just for her, but for our entire family. Her optimism kept us going through this difficult time. After waiting for two long years, we felt it was a miracle when our prayers were answered. We jumped with excitement on hearing the news that our daughter would get a new hand. She too couldn't hold herself back from crying and heaved a huge sigh of relief. We are immensely grateful to the donor's family for their generosity and to Dr. Satbhai and his team for performing a successful surgery without any complications. She will now be able to live her life and fulfill all her dreams," concluded her father Aqeel Ahmad, a filmmaker by profession.