STAMFORD, Conn. — A Connecticut woman grievously wounded in the face and hands this week by a rampaging chimpanzee has been transferred to the Cleveland Clinic, which two months ago performed the nation’s first successful face transplant.
Charla Nash was transferred from Stamford Hospital to the Cleveland facility on Thursday, three days after she was mauled by a 200-pound chimp owned by her friend. Spokeswoman Eileen Sheil said she was being seen by a head and neck surgeon and likely will be treated through a team approach involving many specialists.
“I don’t know at this point” if a face transplant will be considered, Sheil said. “Priority one is to stabilize her.”
The attack left the 55-year-old Stamford woman with severe wounds to her hands and face, requiring four teams of surgeons to work more than seven hours Monday to stabilize her. She left Connecticut in critical condition, although she improved slightly since her operation, officials said.
Nash’s transfer to Cleveland likely is because of the clinic’s expertise in facial reconstruction — not because doctors are considering a transplant right away, said Dr. Bohdan Pomahac, a reconstructive surgeon at Harvard affiliated Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston.
Two of the first medical workers to treat Nash described her nightmarish injuries Thursday.
“It was amazing to us she had these type of injuries, and they were survivable,” said Bill Ackley, a captain with Stamford’s emergency medical services.
Medical workers found Nash, completely unrecognizable, face down Monday in friend Sandra Herold’s driveway. Nash’s hands were horribly disfigured, but still attached to her wrists.
Nash did not talk, but was conscious.
