Thy Thanh

In September 2001, volunteer firefighter Patrick Hardison of Senatobia, MS, was left with disfiguring burns across his entire face, head, neck and upper torso after entering a burning home in the line of duty. Fourteen years later, he underwent the world's most extensive face transplant.

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The marathon surgery, concluded at NYU Langone Medical Center in New York, NY, on 15th August, 2015, took 26 hours to complete and involved a team of over 100 people, including physicians, nurses, technical and support staff, led by Dr. Eduardo D. Rodriguez, chair of plastic surgery.

Rodriguez says when he heard Hardison's story he knew he had to do all he could to help him, and every member of his team felt the same way. He notes that the "surgery sets new standards in facial transplantation and will serve as an amazing learning tool."

In 2012, while at the University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC), Rodriguez had led a 36-hour surgical procedure that replaced a 37-year-old man's entire face, including his tongue, both jaws, teeth and nose. At the time, it was heralded as the most extensive face transplant ever, and hit the news again 7 months later when Rodriguez said the face transplant was exceeding all expectations.

A fellow firefighter and member of Hardison's church heard about Rodriguez's work and contacted the surgeon on his friend's behalf.

Hardison had lost his ears, lips, eyelids, eyebrows, most of his nose and all of his hair. After undergoing more than 70 surgeries, he was still unable to return to a normal life and was referred to Rodriguez, who evaluated him for a face transplant.

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First time seeing patient has received new eyelids, blinking muscles

Hardison's operation is significant because he received the donor's eyelids and the muscles that control blinking - a procedure that had not been previously performed on a seeing patient. Hardison was in danger of losing his sight and had been unable to perform independent daily tasks, such as driving.

Blinking - and involuntary blinking in particular - helps prevent infection and preserve sight by keeping the eyes hydrated and clean.

In January 2015, the journal Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery published a study