Hand reattached, man leaves hospital

Associated Press

SEATTLE — A fisherman whose hand was accidentally cut off and then reattached by surgeons, left Harborview Medical Center on Friday to continue his recovery.

Patrick Laulu’s reattached right hand will never work quite like a normal one, but it’s too soon to know how much function it will regain, said Dr. Loryn Weinstein, an orthopedic surgeon who worked on the complex operation.

Laulu must use a machine that moves his fingers continuously, eight to 10 hours a day, as part of his rehabilitation process. After three to six months, doctors will know more about how much function he will have.

Laulu, 37, was working below decks on the 238-foot fishing trawler Alaska Juris in the Aleutian Islands when a saw blade cut off his hand Jan. 31.

It’s unlikely that he will return to fishing, Weinstein said, because he needs both motion and sensation in the hand.

The surgeons removed his hand’s small muscles, which are used for writing and other fine dexterity motions, because they could not have survived the 26 to 28 hours without blood supply, she said.

Doctors hope that as nerves regrow slowly, he will regain at least enough sensation to protect him from too much heat or cold.

Laulu issued a written statement but on his lawyer’s advice would not speak with reporters, said Harborview spokesman Susan Gregg-Hanson.

He thanked Coast Guard rescuers who flew a helicopter nearly 500 miles over stormy seas to pluck him from the Alaska Juris and begin his 24-hour journey to Harborview.

"Nobody forced them to risk their lives, they volunteered to do so, and they helped save my hand," he said in the statement.

And he thanked nurses and doctors at Harborview, the region’s trauma center.

"They are the daily heroes that help put the rest of us back together when something really bad happens," he said. "They do not get enough credit. They have provided me with excellent care."

Laulu, who moved to the United States a year ago from Samoa, will recuperate at home in Federal Way.

"I think he’s probably entering the more difficult part now, because the rehabilitation is time-consuming," Weinstein said. "It will take a lot of time and effort on his part now."