Undated photo of Aaron James when he was in the Army National Guard. James served for 10 years and recently received a whole-eye and partial face transplant. (Provided by the James family)
WASHINGTON — Aaron James and doctors at NYU Langone Health on Thursday showed off the results of his eye and partial face transplant.
On June 10, 2021, James was working in Hot Springs, Ark.
, as a high voltage lineman when he suffered an electrical accident and withstood 7,200 volts of electric shock when his face touched live wiring. James had a range of injuries including the loss of his left eye, his dominant left arm below the elbow, his entire nose and lips, front teeth, left cheek area and chin down to the bone.
“Most individuals that I’ve experienced in medicine that sustain that type of injury rarely ever survive,” said Dr.
Eduardo Rodriguez, the lead surgeon on James’ case at the hospital. “Aaron is not a guy you’re going to keep down. He is a fighter.”
James said he joined the Army National Guard in Arkansas at 18. During his 10 years of service, he was deployed to Kuwait in 1999, Egypt in 2002 and Iraq in 2004.
After his accident, James said he initially received care at the burn center at Hillcrest Medical Center in Tulsa, Okla.
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