“Logistics in Coordinating the First Adult Trans-Atlantic Bilateral Hand Transplant: Lessons Learned”

Hand transplantation requires precise preoperative planning and surgical execution. Coordinating a transplant team—including surgeons, anesthesiologists, nurses, and supporting staff—is a time-sensitive challenge when a donor-recipient match is confirmed. International human limb transplantation occurs when the recipient and donor are in separate countries. We describe the logistics behind the first trans-Atlantic adult bilateral hand transplantation, which, to date, required the highest level of coordination and timing. Our experience serves as a proof of concept that international limb transplantation or salvage is possible when the complex logistics of such an endeavor are carefully anticipated. The first two authors contributed equally to this manuscript. Corresponding Author: L. Scott Levin, MD, FACS, University of Pennsylvania, Penn Medicine University City, 3737 Market Street, 6th Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19104 ©2018American Society of Plastic Surgeons

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