When a surfer’s leg washed up on a NSW beach after he was mauled by a three-metre shark, the speculation began. Would surgeons reattach it?
The answer was no. “Spot something missing?” 23-year-old Kai McKenzie joked‘Spot something missing?’: Surfer Kai McKenzie has shared a joke on Instagram.So what are the chances that a leg, arm, hand or finger can be sewn back on? And even when it can be done, should it be?While fingers and partial hands are often successfully reattached, larger limbs such as arms and legs present more challenges due to their size and complexity, said Sydney orthopaedic trauma surgeon Professor Ian Harris.
A patient’s age and health also influence outcomes, with younger patients generally experiencing better nerve recovery and healing.Without getting too technical: “The sequence is skeleton, arteries, nerves, veins and finally the skin,” Deva said. It’s always a difficult conversation, Deva said, “especially when a patient asks you, ‘Can you just try to put it back on, doc?’ I say, ‘Yes, I can, but I think you’d be better off with a prosthetic.’“You can be the heroic surgeon who reattached a leg or an arm but the problems don’t surface for months later when the limb is a liability. Just dead tissue that keeps getting injured or infected.”
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