In April 2011, less than one month after the institution completed the nation’s first full face transplant, the face transplant team at Brigham and Women’s institution, lead by Dr. Bohdan Pomahac, performed the nation’s second full face transplant on patient Mitch Hunter of Indiana. Dr. Bohdan Pomahac was in charge of the procedure. The operation was the third one of its kind to be carried out at BWH and the fourth one of its kind to be carried out anywhere in the nation.
Including the nose, eyelids, muscles of facial animation, and the nerves that power them and create sensation, the whole facial region of patient Mitch Hunter, 30, from Indiana was replaced by the team of more than 30 doctors, nurses, anesthesiologists, and residents over the course of more than 14 hours of labor. This included the replacement of the facial nerves. In 2001, Hunter was involved in an automobile accident that resulted in his receiving a severe electric shock from a high voltage electrical line.
