Plastic surgeons Dominique Tremblay and Elie Boghossian at Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital and researchers at the Université de Montréal Faculty of Medicine have developed an approach to nerve transfer.
It essentially comprises moving specific healthy nerves from ineligible patients to inactive nerves. This process reanimates the inactive muscles of their hands and arms. The researchers achieved this in the case of the young quadriplegic patient, Miss Jeanne Carrière of Dr Tremblay and Boghossian. She regained the use of her hands and arms with this innovative surgical technique.
Dr Tremblay explained,
In the quadriplegic patient, we replace the nerve impulses of a nerve that does not work with a nerve that still works. With time and rehabilitation, the nerve impulse is reformed, and the use of the hands and arms gradually returns,
Over the last few years, more than a dozen patients have gone through this reconstruction at MHR as part of a development phase. Moreover, all these procedures have been successful.
Another thing that should be noted is that all the rehabilitation steps for the patients were done in close collaboration with the Institut de réadaptation Gingras-Lindsay-de-Montréal. Moreover, due to the success of the CIUSSS-EMTL, it is now available to put an end to the developmental phase. In addition, offer this intervention to everyone who can benefit from it, especially patients with the same concerns.
The HMR also obtained a designation from the Quebec Ministry of Health and Social Services. It identifies this unique establishment in Quebec, which is carrying out vascularized composite allotransplantations. They mainly include facial transplants and transplants of the arm (upper limb).
