A French woman who had the world's first partial face transplant spoke today for the first time to reporters since her operation, saying she was thankful to have the opportunity for a new start in life.
Isabelle Dinoire who received the world's first partial face transplant addresses a news conference at Amiens hospital in northern France today.
Isabelle Dinoire (38) spoke with difficulty, and her words were hard to understand. She had fine scar lines running from her nose over her cheekbones down to her jaw and seemed to have difficulty closing her mouth.
"I want to resume a normal life," Ms Dinoire told reporters at Amiens hospital in northeastern France, where she received a new nose, lips and chin in November.
In a 15-hour operation surgeons used tissues, muscles, arteries and veins from a brain-dead woman to rebuild Ms Dinoire's face.
Ms Dinoire, who was mauled by a dog last May, is from the Lille area in northeastern France. Doctors said she had initially been having trouble eating and speaking because of her injuries.
Unlike heart, liver and kidney transplants, it was not life-saving surgery, but the operation posed considerable risk for Ms Dinoire.
The woman received her new features from a brain-dead donor.
The woman has taken strolls in public without drawing stares. She has also been able to chat and eat.
AP