Read on Twitter
So while part of me wants to believe that no one is this stupid, the former burn nurse/SFF writer in me can't help but want to talk about what an experimental face transplantation plausibly would cost, look like, care involved, etc -- a sure to be very weirdass thread:
1/x https://twitter.com/santiagomayer_/status/1350676348616929281
1/x https://twitter.com/santiagomayer_/status/1350676348616929281
First off, a story about my 1st experiences w/facial reconstruction plastic surgery, for a woman who's nightgown was polyester and caught on fire and burned away most of her facial skin....
She was one of my 1st patients as a burn RN and --
2/x
She was one of my 1st patients as a burn RN and --
2/x
Facial skin is REALLY THIN. (I know the Trump/Biden thing is whole-face, but let me natter.)
They harvested skin from her scalp to go onto her face, so the quality of the skin -- thin -- would match best.
The harvestable layer of skin is the dermis, you want to get --
3/x
They harvested skin from her scalp to go onto her face, so the quality of the skin -- thin -- would match best.
The harvestable layer of skin is the dermis, you want to get --
3/x
a portion of the skin's regenerative layer in there -- this is also why you can't harvest dermis indefinitely to keep grafting people, you can harvest 1 site twice max, otherwise you risk taking too much dermis from your host-site (autograft)
4/x
4/x
Anyhoo, this layer does include hair SHAFTS but usually hair FOLLICLES are deeper -- so it's just this thin as hell tissue layer they pulled from her scalp to replace her cheek skin with and all the little hair bits were still trapped inside of it and
5/x
5/x
I saw that as a baby RN in the middle of the night -- I was in there to roll her graft onto her, to make sure it adhered, by literally rolling it with the wooden edge of a long q-tip, to push fluids to the sides and edges so the skin would stick to flesh
6/x
6/x
And at the time I Knew No Better and I was sure we'd gone and given this poor woman a beard!!!!
(we hadn't. the hair bits fell out. no follicles were transfered. disaster was averted.)
7/x
(we hadn't. the hair bits fell out. no follicles were transfered. disaster was averted.)
7/x
However though -- she did wind up with significant scarring.
Our MDs very much did their best, but skin scars, and it doesn't always take, sometimes grafts peel at the edges, etc.
Moving on to full face transplants tho --
8/x
Our MDs very much did their best, but skin scars, and it doesn't always take, sometimes grafts peel at the edges, etc.
Moving on to full face transplants tho --
8/x
COME THE VERY MUCH FUCK ON.
There's not an 'experimental surgery' that even BEGINS to allow that.
Have they forgotten the very public face transplant done a few years ago?
9/x
There's not an 'experimental surgery' that even BEGINS to allow that.
Have they forgotten the very public face transplant done a few years ago?
9/x
Here's a FUCKING FANTASTIC article about it (thanks, Nat Geo!) https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2018/09/face-transplant-katie-stubblefield-story-identity-surgery-science/
CW: photos are intense, but REAL and GOOD.
10/x
CW: photos are intense, but REAL and GOOD.
10/x
One of the plastic surgeons I used to work with said something profound (possibly picked up from another surgeon) in that plastic surgery is really all about beauty versus perfusion capability.
11/x
11/x
If you've ever watched Botched, you know that you can't operate on people's faces endlessly -- the tissue is SO THIN and you're already dealing with perfusion risks in that cartilage, which creates arguably the most defining characteristic of your face, the nose, is
12/x
12/x
totally poorly perfused to begin with - cartilage provides structure, but not much else.
Inability to perfuse = tissue death.
100% of the time.
13/x
Inability to perfuse = tissue death.
100% of the time.
13/x
So let's think this through, anatomically....
There are 42 muscles in your face.
There are this many blood vessels in your face, lol
https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Generic-map-of-superficial-blood-vessels-on-the-face-courtesy-of-Primal-Pictures-16_fig1_228687598
14/x
There are 42 muscles in your face.
There are this many blood vessels in your face, lol
https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Generic-map-of-superficial-blood-vessels-on-the-face-courtesy-of-Primal-Pictures-16_fig1_228687598
14/x
And I don't even want to know how many nerves endings are in your face -- YOUR FACE! Your most recognizable feature, the one we're all completely evolutionarily triggered to read and know! -- that control each of those 42 muscles to create expressions & gift you with speech
15/x
15/x
