Abu Dhabi medics replace man's thumb with his toe after freak accident

Doctors at SSMC reattach severed fingers and build new hand for father of five

Amjad Khan's toe was repurposed as his thumb after a terrible accident. Photo: SSMC

An Abu Dhabi resident's thumb has been replaced by his toe, following a freak accident in which he lost all the fingers on one hand.

Amjad Khan, a father of five, lost his fingers and thumb when his right hand got stuck between two sections of a lorry's trailer two months ago.

He underwent emergency surgery at Sheikh Shakhbout Medical City (SSMC) in Abu Dhabi where his hand was reconstructed with microvascular replantation of his fingers, with the second toe of his left foot being used as his new thumb.

"I am grateful that I have my fingers back and I still have my job," he said.

When his fingers were severed, the company's safety officer quickly sealed them in a bag and Mr Khan was rushed to SSMC, where the all-night operation was carried out.

Microvascular surgery is a complex surgical technique, used to reconnect tiny blood vessels and nerves in the fingers and restore circulation to the amputated digits before they die from lack of blood supply.

“On arrival at SSMC, the patient was taken straight to the operating theatre and underwent microvascular replantation of the index, middle, ring and little fingers in a 12-hour operation throughout the night," said Roderick Dunn, chairman of the Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at SSMC.

"Unfortunately, the thumb was too damaged to replant.

“This was an extreme injury – the digits were avulsed from the hand rather than being amputated by a clean cut, making surgical replantation much more difficult.

"Following the lengthy procedure, the index, middle and ring fingers survived."

After successful replantation of three of the patient’s fingers, further options for thumb reconstruction were discussed between Dr Dunn, the team and the patient.

Mr Khan later underwent a microvascular toe transfer, using the second toe from the left foot to create a new thumb in his injured right hand.

This procedure was performed successfully three weeks after the initial injury and enabled the patient to have a functional hand with three fingers and a thumb.

Today Mr Khan is able to move his fingers and is back to work.

Dr Dunn said that without this surgery, the patient would have been condemned to life as a hand amputee, with great difficulty working or looking after his family.

"When the patient came in for his follow-up visit a month after the second surgery, the toe-to-thumb transfer was clearly a success and the reattached fingers were all healthy," he said.

"X-rays showed the bones were healing and his hand is moving properly."

Dr Ateq Al Messabi, deputy chief medical officer and consultant general surgeon at SSMC, said: “This is another example of outstanding multidisciplinary teamwork.

It reflects our ability to act quickly when presented with a serious trauma to ensure the best possible outcome."