http://www.easttexasmatters.com/news/worlds-first-human-head-transplant-to-take-place-2017/681001972

The guinea pig is a Russian man suffering from some degenerative muscle disease that is killing him.



Video: [video][/video]

My guess is the dude dies. But, I guess if you're going to die any way it's worth a shot.

C.

I'll go with him making it for a few hours or maybe a couple of days.

Even if he "lives", I don't see any way he'll have return of any meaningful neurocognitive function.

First and foremost, can the head-end of his spinal cord be successfully connected to the body-end of the donor's spinal cord? If not, why bother?

They are doing something interesting these days with severed spinal cords, according to this link - but matching the tissue of the two individuals may be a completely different matter:

http://www.columbianeurosurgery.org/...nto-mans-legs/

There are a plethora of other considerations - medical, ethical, societal - but just overcoming the above stuff would be technologically and medically difficult enough.

I wonder if the scientist would think it had been worth it if he wakes up as a permanent quadriplegic, but can otherwise breathe, eat, think, and talk on his own - think Denzel Washington in "The Bone Collector".

I think this guy will fall victim to Bobble Head Syndrome first.

crazy to think that this could actually be a thing

He'll end up somewhere along the lines of Terri Schiavo and/or Christopher Reeve*

*Post horseback riding.

Spock;1844707 wrote:crazy to think that this could actually be a thing

You should volunteer for the second try.

salto;1844712 wrote:He'll end up somewhere along the lines of Terri Schiavo......

I hadn't considered that, but you're absolutely right - if the attempt to connect the two spinal cord ends fails, he'll be worse off than a quadrapalegic because he'd have no nerve connection between brain and lungs.

Could Terri Schiavo breathe on her own? I can't remember.

Locked-in syndrome, indeed.

Zunardo;1844726 wrote:I hadn't considered that, but you're absolutely right - if the attempt to connect the two spinal cord ends fails, he'll be worse off than a quadrapalegic because he'd have no nerve connection between brain and lungs.

Could Terri Schiavo breathe on her own? I can't remember.

Locked-in syndrome, indeed.

As long as he isn't somewhere with jebus-freaks in power who'll insist he has to be kept alive no matter what, I'll still be rolling the dice if in his position. You have a chance (no matter how small) of a better quality of life and if it fails, pull the plug.