Team of surgeons at UCI Health — Orange saves woman’s severed arm after train accident
Ventura surf instructor, 24, has limb reattached during a 10-hour surgery
IN THE NEWS: Ventura resident Elieah Boyd, 24, was pushing her 80-pound electric bike across train tracks on July 7 when a train clipped her bike, detaching her arm from her body. Once her severed limb was located, she was airlifted to UCI Health – Orange where a team of trauma, vascular, orthopedic and plastic surgeons successfully reattached it mere hours after the accident.
Boyd shared more about the care she received at UCI Health – Orange, formerly known as UCI Medical Center, with KTLA, including her appreciation for the team of doctors and nurses who cared for her. She also shared that she has started to regain feeling in her reattached arm.
Her UCI Health surgical team included Dr. Eric Wang, who specializes in reconstructive surgery, Dr. Siwei Dong, a vascular surgeon with a specialty in limb salvage, along with orthopedic surgeon Dr. Tyler Johnston.
Additionally, trauma chief and surgeon Dr. Michael Lekawa organized Boyd’s care when she arrived at the hospital. A variety of nurses, fellows and residents played a critical role in caring for Boyd before she went into surgery and after the successful reattachment of her limb. She will undergo two additional surgeries in the coming weeks.
As the only Level 1 trauma center in Orange County, UCI Health – Orange provides the region’s most advanced care to help people of all ages survive life-threatening injuries. UCI Health trauma, burn and critical care specialists deliver lifesaving care around the clock, 365 days a year. The clinicians are the region’s leading experts in the treatment of all critical and traumatic injuries.
Discover more in the Ventura County Star.
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About UCI Health
UCI Health, one of California’s largest academic health systems, is the clinical enterprise of the University of California, Irvine. The 1,317-bed system comprises its main campus UCI Medical Center, its flagship hospital in Orange, Calif., the UCI Health — Irvine medical campus, four hospitals and affiliated physicians of the UCI Health Community Network in Orange and Los Angeles counties and a network of ambulatory care centers across the region. UCI Medical Center provides tertiary and quaternary care and is home to the only Orange County-based National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center, high-risk perinatal/neonatal program and American College of Surgeons-verified Level I adult and Level II pediatric trauma center, gold level 1 geriatric emergency department and regional burn center. Powered by UC Irvine, UCI Health serves nearly 5.7 million people in Orange County, western Riverside County and southeast Los Angeles County. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and X (formerly Twitter).