Severed hand kept alive on man’s ankle

A man's hand was grafted onto his ankle to keep it alive after it was severed in an industrial accident.

Xiao Wei's hand grafted to his ankle in a hospital in Changsha, in central China's Hunan province. (AAP)

A Chinese man's severed hand was grafted onto his ankle while his arm healed sufficiently for reattachment surgery.

Xiao Wei, 25, had his right hand severed in a machinery accident near Changde in Hunan Province, China.

Reattachment surgery was a possibility, but Wei’s arm was too badly injured for the procedure to go ahead immediately. 

His hand was grafted onto his ankle to keep it alive, and, 35 days later, successfully reattached to his arm.

With the right rehabilitation, the nerves could heal within six months, one of Wei’s doctors said.