Establishing an upper extremity transplantation program: lessons learnt over 12 years

As one of the early hand transplant programs in the world, we are often asked to educate other programs on the lessons we have learned and on how to set up a successful hand transplantation program.

Two decades of global experience with vascularized composite allotransplantation (VCA) of the upper limb have demonstrated improved functional outcomes and quality of life for carefully screened patients. Despite initial reticence about VCA, over 30 patients in the USA have benefited from hand transplantation, with around 80% long-term successes. We have experience with four bilateral upper extremity patients who have undergone bilateral upper extremity allotransplants. This review article highlights our personal experience and lessons with respect to VCA team assembly, logistics, patient selection, perioperative planning, the operative procedure, and postoperative management.

Continual learning and critical evaluation are crucial to maintaining a successful upper extremity VCA program. This will ensure that patients who stand to benefit most from this life-enhancing procedure are identified and are others optimized to achieve the best possible outcomes.