First Double Arm Transplant Patient Recovering Well

A man who received the world's first complete double arm transplant said today he was recovering well and could perform some basic tasks with his new limbs.

Karl Merk, a German farmer who underwent the operation in July, can already open doors and turn lights on and off.

Doctors said there were good indications of nerve growth in the arms but it could take up to two years for Merk to relearn how to use his hands.

The 54-year-old lost his arms just below the shoulder in a farm accident involving a combine harvester six years ago. It took five teams of medical professionals – a total of around 40 surgeons, anesthetists, nurses and other staff - to carry out the 15-hour operation over two days in July.

"These are my arms, and I'm not giving them away again," Merk said at a news conference at the Munich University clinic where the surgery was performed.

He said when he first woke up he could not believe it had been successful: "It was really overwhelming when I saw that I had arms again."

Merk said he was looking forward to going home, which doctors said could be in four to six weeks. In the meantime he will continue with an intensive program of physiotherapy, electric stimulation and psychological counseling.

There remains a risk that Merk's immune system may react to the new limbs, but doctors said there was no sign so far of them being rejected.