Facial Allograft Donation: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis of the Experiences of Family Members.

Facial allograft transplantation can be regarded as a particular and complex type of donation because of its perceptibility and the importance of the face as an identity characteristic. As research on this topic is currently lacking, the objective of this study is to explore the experiences of the family members of the donor in facial allograft donation. In-depth, semi-structured interviews were conducted separately with the donor's family members and analyzed using interpretative phenomenological analysis.

Long-Term Multifunctional Outcome and Risks of Face Vascularized Composite Allotransplantation.

Vascularized composite allotransplantation (VCA) to reconstruct complex centrally located facial defects and to restore vital functions in a 1-staged procedure has worldwide gained acceptance. Continuous long-term multidisciplinary follow-up of face transplant patients is mandatory for surveillance of the complications associated with the immunosuppressive regime and for functional assessment of the graft. In December 2011, our multidisciplinary team performed a digitally planned face transplant at the Ghent University Hospital, Belgium on a 55-year-old man with a large central facial defect after a high-energy ballistic injury.

Complex facial reconstruction by vascularized composite allotransplantation: the first Belgian case.

Introduction: Complex injuries to the central part of the face are difficult to reconstruct with the current plastic surgery methods. The ultimate one-staged approach to restore anatomy and vital facial functions is to perform a vascularized composite allotransplantation (VCA).

Methods: A 54-year-old man suffered from a high-energy ballistic injury, resulting in a large central facial defect.

[The art of facial prosthetics].

Background: Anaplastology is the discipline devoted to the construction of epithesis. An epithesis is a prosthesis that replaces soft tissue. This offers a solution for patients with a facial defect.

Silicones in the rehabilitation of burns: a review and overview.

This article gives an overview of the use of silicones in the treatment and prevention of hypertrophic (burn related) scars. Of all non-invasive treatment modalities the use of continuous pressure and occlusive contact media, e.g.