“A shot in the dark” is a phrase that perfectly describes a procedure performed recently on an Arkansas man. This procedure is the first in the world: a human eye transplant.
While transplants of the cornea are not uncommon in recent years, which replace the tissue in front of the eye, replacing an entire eye is a complicated, untested field of practice.
Aaron James, 46 of Hot Springs, AR., is the victim of severe electrical damage due to an accident in 2021 while he was working for a power line company. In the accident, James lost his left arm, and the damage to his face and left eye was so extensive it had to be removed.
It was announced on Thursday, November 9th that James’ eye is recovering well, and is remarkably healthy, despite the relative unknowns on the process. Doctors are not claiming to restore sight just yet, but believe this success to be a big step in reaching that end.
James said on the process: “You got to start somewhere, there’s got to be a first person somewhere,” and “We’re just taking it one day at a time.”
