After living for 23 years without both arms following a devastating workplace accident, Icelandic man Felix Gretarsson made medical history in January 2021. ❤️
At Hôpital Édouard Herriot in Lyon, France, surgeons performed the world’s first bilateral arm transplant, replacing both of his arms in an operation that lasted nearly 15 hours. The transplant involved the left arm at the shoulder and the right arm at the upper arm.
Gretarsson had already spent years preparing for the possibility of a transplant and moved to Lyon in 2013 while waiting for a suitable donor. After the surgery, he began an intensive rehabilitation program to gradually regain movement and function in his transplanted arms.
The transplant was not a simple one-time procedure. It required lifelong anti-rejection medication and extensive rehabilitation, with a multidisciplinary team involved in his care.
Years later, the Hospices Civils de Lyon continued to document his progress and rehabilitation. His journey has become a remarkable example of how transplantation, rehabilitation and years of determination can transform a person’s life. ❤️
Source: Hospices Civils de Lyon (HCL), the hospital system that performed and followed his transplant.
