BALTIMORE (AP) — A soldier who lost all four limbs in a roadside bomb attack in 2009 in Iraq has received a double-arm transplant in Baltimore.
Johns Hopkins Hospital surgeons plan to discuss the transplant Tuesday at a news conference with the infantryman.
Johns Hopkins says the soldier is one of seven in the United States who have undergone successful double-arm transplants.
Hospital officials say the transplant last month is the first for the hospital and involved an innovative treatment to prevent rejection of the new limbs. Johns Hopkins officials say the treatment used the dead donor's bone marrow cells and so far has prevented rejection and reduced the need for anti-rejection drugs. Those drugs can cause complications including infection and organ damage.
