Welcome

The Composite Tissue Allotransplantation program is a partnership of physicians and researchers at Jewish Hospital Hand Care Center, Kleinert Kutz & Associates, and the University of Louisville. The group developed the pioneering hand transplant procedure and were the first surgeons to perform hand transplants in the United States. As of March 2011, there have been a total of 70 hands transplanted on 52 patients around the world.

A hand transplant, unlike a solid organ transplant, involves multiple tissues (skin, muscle, tendon, bone, cartilage, fat, nerves and blood vessels) and is called composite tissue allotransplantation.

Indiana Man Receives Hand Transplant

Donnie Rickelman, a 36-year-old Indiana man, received a hand transplant on his left hand on July 10, 2011 at Jewish Hospital Hand Care Center in Louisville, Kentucky. The 14 1/2 hour procedure, performed by surgeons from Kleinert Kutz and Associates and the University of Louisville, included a team of sixteen surgeons.

For more information on Mr. Rickelman, including photos and videos, click here.

Jewish Hospital & St. Mary's HealthCare Kleinert Institute Kleinert Kutz Hand Care Center University of Louisville School of Medicine