Uygur boy whose arm was saved recovering well

A Uygur boy from the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region whose right arm was severed, prompting a race against time to save his life, is recovering well, his doctor said on Thursday.

On the afternoon of April 30, the 7-year-old’s right arm was cut off accidentally by a tractor mechanism in Hotan prefecture’s Kumairik village. Surgery was required within eight hours to save his arm.

Due to the complexity of the operation, the local hospital decided to transfer the boy to the traditional Chinese medicine hospital affiliated with Xinjiang Medical University in Urumqi, about 1,400 kilometers away, for surgery to reattach and repair the arm.

The last flight to Urumqi that night — China Southern Airlines Flight CZ6820 — was stopped on the runway and sent back to the terminal to pick up the boy.

After the plane landed in Urumqi, a string of green channels, with a police car leading the way, was utilized to make the trip to the hospital as fast as possible.

The boy arrived at the hospital in Urumqi in time and his severed limb was successfully reattached, and broken bone fragments were realigned.

People around the country were touched by the united efforts to save the boy’s arm after the story went viral on social media.

The boy received a second surgery on May 12 to close up the wound, and he has been recovering well since, Li Li, the orthopedist at the hospital in Urumqi who is in charge of the boy’s surgery and recovery, said on Thursday in a video interview.

“The bones in his right arm are healing and the injured muscle is growing well. The blood circulation in his reattached arm is very good and he can now lift his arm,” Li said. “Also, the boy is in good spirits and can now walk perfectly.”

The medical team has made a detailed recovery plan for the boy that includes the use of traditional Chinese medicine, physical therapy and psychotherapy. “We hope we can help him to return to normal life as soon as possible,” Li added.

Xu Guixiang, a spokesman for the Xinjiang regional government, said on Thursday that the effort to save the boy’s arm was extremely touching, and showed that people from various groups in Xinjiang have a harmonious relationship and fully protected rights.