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Biotech / Medical : Biotransplant(BTRN) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: scaram(o)uche who wrote (195)	1/25/1999 8:43:00 PM
From: Bluegreen	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 1475

Monday January 25 7:13 PM ET First U.S. Hand Transplant Performed In Kentucky By Steve Robrahn LOUISVILLE, Ky. (Reuters) - A New Jersey man who lost his left hand in a fireworks accident received the first U.S. human hand transplant Monday, although his doctors said he may not be able to move the hand for at least a week. Doctors at Jewish Hospital here said they transplanted a hand from an unidentified brain-dead donor to New Jersey health industry employee David Scott, 37, in a 15-hour procedure that began Sunday afternoon. Physical therapists will work over the coming days with Scott, whose new hand will be put in a brace, and doctors hoped he will begin to gain some movement next week. Scott should eventually be able to hold a glass and open a door but probably not button a shirt, doctors said. ''It's not going to be the kind of hand that will be able to play the piano beautifully,'' Dr. Warren Breidenbach, one of the principal doctors on the team performing the operation, told reporters. Breidenbach said it could be at least a year before doctors knew whether the hand functioned well. He said they hoped Scott would have a good grip and some sensation of hot and cold. Scott, who was born left handed, lost the hand in a 1985 accident involving a powerful firecracker. He is married and had two sons. He should be able to leave the hospital in about a week and return home to Absecon, New Jersey, within three months. Doctors said Scott should have some nerve function in the hand within three to six months, but he will need to remain on anti-rejection drugs the rest of his life. In September, French doctors in Lyon performed groundbreaking surgery when they painstakingly transplanted the right hand and forearm from a brain-dead donor to Australian Clint Hallam. Hallam regained a sense of touch in his fingers a few months after the surgery. A hand transplant was attempted in 1964 in Ecuador, but primitive anti-rejection drugs were used at the time and the hand was rejected within two weeks. While organ transplants have become fairly routine, microsurgery is required to attach the intricate web of nerves, arteries and tendons to perform transplants of human limbs. The Louisville transplant involved slightly different anti-rejection drugs than those used in France, the doctors said. The hospital has created a Web site for information on hand transplants at www.handtransplant.com. Doctors said the biggest worry with Scott was the possibility of blood clots forming in the new hand, with the greatest risk in the first three days following surgery. Another major concern was infection. Scott was chosen for the operation out of a group of 99 patients based on his good health and his poor luck in using a prosthetic device. Matching bone size between the donor and recipient was also critical to choosing the right candidate, the doctors said. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------

To: scaram(o)uche who wrote (195)	1/27/1999 4:48:00 PM
From: JOEBT1	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1475

Rick--I called MEDI IR and asked about MEDI-507. I got a very enthusiastic description of the ongoing trials--non steroid and steroid resistant pediatric and psoriasis. They should have data on the previously completed trials in late 2nd Qt. He indicated 507 was their most significant development program. He did not mention BTRN and I didn't prompt him. Incidentally I put in an order for BTRN today and only got 600; then they jacked up the price by 1/8. Only 700 traded all day.