China and Russia medical teams perform spinal cord transplant

A joint medical team from China and Russia has performed a spinal cord transplant on an adult patient in Moscow. The procedure, conducted at the Sklifosovsky Research Institute of Emergency Medicine, involved removing a segment of the patient's spinal cord that had been completely damaged by trauma three years prior and replacing it with a segment from a brain-dead donor.

Led by surgeon Ren Xiaoping from the Second Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi University of Chinese Medicine, the 12-hour operation utilized microsurgical techniques and polyethylene glycol (PEG) as a biological glue to fuse the donor tissue with the recipient's spinal cord. While Ren has described the procedure as a “world first,” Russian officials, including Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin, have characterized it as a “first in Russia.”

The patient, who previously faced permanent paralysis, is reported to be in good condition following the surgery. The Russian team is expected to release formal documentation detailing the procedure in the future.