At the UNBROKEN rehabilitation center in Lviv, veteran Volodymyr Kirsanov underwent reconstruction of his face, which was mutilated by shrapnel. The man could not eat after suffering a severe double mine-blast injury. The shrapnel cut his entire body, but it was his face that was most disfigured. UNN reports this with reference to the Lviv City Council.
Volodymyr Kirsanov is a driver from Zhytomyr. He volunteered for the war back in 2014. After demobilization, he returned to his civilian profession. And in the first days of the full-scale invasion, he joined the 95th separate airborne assault brigade of Polissya, which is based in Volodymyr's small homeland.
The defender was seriously wounded in the first summer of the Great War. It happened near Izyum, Kharkiv region. First, a tank shell exploded near Volodymyr, and an enemy mine came right after it. The heavily wounded soldier managed to get to the evacuation point only thanks to the support of his comrade-in-arms.
"I was in a coma for 19 days. And when I woke up and couldn't speak, I realized how severe my injury was. The doctors were reassuring me, saying: you're alive, everything will be fine! But I couldn't speak. The wounds were all over my body: neck, back, arms, legs. But it was my face that suffered the most," Volodymyr says.
The defender underwent a series of operations in hospitals in Dnipro, Kyiv and Lviv. Due to the hole in his face, he could not eat properly. Food simply did not stay in his mouth: it fell out and spilled out. As a result, Volodymyr, who weighed more than 80 kilograms before his injury, lost a lot of weight - down to 47 kilograms. Only a complex and multi-stage facial reconstruction could help. So the difficult patient was referred to the maxillofacial surgeons at the UNBROKEN Center.
"The patient had a complicated perforating gunshot wound to the face. It was decided to close the defect using microsurgical methods, using a flap from the patient's shoulder. However, because of the tattoo in this area, he categorically refused. So we had to take the flap from the other side. It was a difficult decision, because we had to transport the flap to the opposite side. Although the procedure partially worked, the patient could not stop smoking, which negatively affected the results of the operation, as nicotine constricts blood vessels. We were constantly working to get Volodymyr to quit smoking, as improving blood supply in this area was critical. But, unfortunately, he hasn't gotten rid of this habit to this day," said Oleh Kovtuniak, head of the head and neck center.
After the transplantation and engraftment of the flap, Volodymyr began to eat better and, accordingly, gain weight. Subsequently, the maxillofacial surgeons, together with foreign specialists, performed plastic surgery on the patient.
"In a few months, the veteran will undergo another complicated surgery - reconstruction of the lower jaw using an individual prosthesis and closure of the soft tissue defect. Today Volodymyr weighs 79 kg. He is working as a driver again and has a great desire to help the army. He says he would like to return to the army, but with his injury it is impossible," the statement reads.
Help
The National Rehabilitation Center UNBROKEN (UNBROKEN) is a unique place where adults and children affected by Russian aggression receive comprehensive care. This includes reconstructive surgery, orthopedics and prosthetics. Not only are prostheses fitted to the injured, but they are also made here. The wounded also receive physical, psychological and psychosocial rehabilitation and recovery under the guidance of specialists. All assistance is provided free of charge. The center was opened in April 2023.