Hand transplant patient doing well

Jerry Fisher's artificial limb, top, and his new hand, below

By Elizabeth Cohen
CNN Medical Correspondent

LOUISVILLE, Kentucky (CNN) -- Jerry Fisher, the second recipient of a hand transplant in the United States, will see his new hand Monday afternoon for the first time and begin physical therapy Wednesday or Thursday, his doctors said..

"Jerry has only seen the tips of his fingers sticking out of the dressing," said Dr. Warren Breidenbach, the hand surgeon who led the 13-hour procedure Friday night and Saturday morning. "Now we'll uncover that and take a look at the wounds."

Breidenbach said Fisher is doing "extremely well" and has passed the most critical period -- the first 48 hours after the surgery -- when there's the highest risk that a blood clot could cut off circulation to the hand. "With each 24-hour period that goes by, the likelihood of that taking place goes down quite a bit," he added.

Fisher is expected to be in the hospital for another 5-8 days and then will stay in Louisville for three months before moving back home to Michigan. He'll have to take immunosuppressive drugs every day for the rest of his life to prevent his body from rejecting the new hand.

VIDEO Jerry Fisher speaks with CNN about his hand transplant operation Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media) CNN's Elizabeth Cohen reports on the delicate operation Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)   INTERACTIVE: A brief look at the surgical process for hand transplantation     ALSO Transcript of a chat with a hand transplant surgeon

Dr. Darla Granger, the lead transplant surgeon on the team, said she feels more confident now about the effectiveness of those drugs compared to two years ago when the team did the same surgery on Matthew Scott -- the first hand transplant in the United States and the second in the world.

"Now [Fisher] is the ninth in the world and the same immunosuppressive regimen has been done with all," Granger said. "When compliant with that regimen, we've had very good results."

The recipient of the world's first hand transplant, done in France in 1998, had to have his hand amputated two weeks ago because he didn't take the drugs.

The Louisville doctors had a rigorous screening process for patients, including evaluations by psychiatrists and social workers.

"This is an experimental, investigational procedure," said Breidenbach. "We discussed the pros and cons of everything -- from a patient's blood pressure to his family life."

As part of the evaluation, doctors explained to Fisher the risks of the procedure, which include high blood pressure, liver and kidney dysfunction, increased risk of certain cancers, diabetes, and death due to the immonosuppressants he will be taking for the rest of his life.

"I was impressed by how motivated and intelligent he was. He could truly understand the risk," Dr. Granger said. "That's what made me comfortable as a physician to go ahead with it."

Fisher, who's right-handed, lost his left hand in a Fourth of July fireworks accident in 1996.

"Anytime he would try to do something he couldn't do it because he didn't have the hand, he was very disappointed," Fisher's wife, Sonya said at the news conference. "As soon as we heard about Matt Scott he knew he wanted a chance to do this."

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Jewish Hospital
Hand Transplant

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