Highlights
- The National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery performs a historic reattachment of both hands after 20 hours, marking a first in Bangladesh
- A Gazipur college student, Tasfin Ferdous, had both hands severed at the palms by assailants
- Surgeons call it a rare medical miracle and the first such success in Bangladesh
- Family recounts fear, despair, and gratitude as Tasfin begins to recover
- Doctors urge the public to bring patients with severed limbs without delay, as early treatment increases survival chances
The National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery achieved an extraordinary medical milestone by successfully reattaching both hands of college student Tasfin Ferdous nearly 20 hours after they were severed.
The attack took place on 9 November in Tongi, Gazipur. Tasfin, returning home after playing with friends, was suddenly ambushed by unknown assailants. In a brutal assault, both of his hands were cut off cleanly at the palms.
Bleeding heavily and fighting for life, Tasfin was rushed to Tongi Hospital for initial treatment and then referred to Dhaka Medical College Hospital. By the time he finally reached the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery, more than six crucial hours had already passed.
Doctors say that by then, Tasfin’s condition was “almost hopeless” due to extreme blood loss and the long delay that usually makes limb reattachment impossible. Yet a team led by Assistant Professor Dr. Shariful Islam Sharif refused to give up. After nearly 20 continuous hours of surgery, they made the impossible possible.
Speaking at a press briefing on 3 December, an emotional Tasfin shared his disbelief and gratitude.
আমি কখনোই কল্পনা করিনি আমার সম্পূর্ণ বিচ্ছিন্ন এই হাত ফিরে পাবো। আলহাম্দুলিল্লাহ ডাক্তারদের চেষ্টা ও আল্লাহর ইচ্ছায় আমার এই হাত সচল হয়েছে। ইনশাআল্লাহ আমি এখন পুরোপুরি সুস্থ হওয়ার আশা করছি।
Translation:“I never imagined I would get back my completely severed hands. Alhamdulillah, with the doctors’ efforts and Allah’s mercy, my hands are functioning again. InshAllah I am hopeful of making a full recovery.”
His voice trembled as he spoke, but it carried a renewed sense of life a life he thought he had lost forever. Tasfin’s mother, Afroza Sumi, recalled the terrifying hours after the attack.
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আমরা প্রথমে ওর হাতও খুঁজে পাইনি। টঙ্গী হাসপাতালে প্রাথমিক চিকিৎসা শেষে ঢাকায় আনতে এম্বুলেন্সে ওঠার পর ওর হাত খুঁজে পাওয়া যায়। আমি ভাবছি আমার ছেলে আর বেঁচেই থাকবে না। এখন তার হাত যে আগের মতো ভালো হচ্ছে এটা আল্লাহর নেয়ামত আর ডাক্তারদের চেষ্টা। ইনারা এত আন্তরিকতার সাথে দেখবেন আমি ভাবতেও পারিনি।
Translation: “At first, we couldn’t even find his hands. After getting into the ambulance to go to Dhaka, someone finally found them. I thought my son wouldn’t survive. Now seeing his hands healing it feels like Allah’s blessing and the doctors’ dedication. I didn’t think they would pay so much attention. But they treated him like their own child.”
Professor Dr. Mohammad Nasir Uddin, Director of the Institute, emphasized that their surgeons regularly perform replantation surgeries but many patients come too late.
শুধু এই ঘটনাই নয়, প্রতিনিয়ত বিচ্ছিন্ন হওয়া অঙ্গ প্রতিস্থাপন করছি আমরা। কিন্তু দেশের মানুষ এই তথ্য না জানায়, অধিকাংশ রোগী আসেন নির্ধারিত সময়ের অনেক পরে। যথাসময়ে সে আসতে পারলে আমরা প্রায় সবাইকেই সুস্থ করে বিদায় দিতে পারছি। আমাদের এখানে দিনরাত ২৪ ঘণ্টা যখনি আসুক তাৎক্ষণিক সেবা মিলবে।
Translation:“Not just this incident, we are regularly reattaching severed limbs. But since people in the country are not aware of this, most patients come long after the critical time has passed. If they could come on time, we would be able to send almost all of them home healed. Here, we provide immediate service 24 hours a day, whenever they arrive.”
The doctor also urged that if any part of the body is severed, it should be brought to the National Burn and Plastic Surgery Institute without wasting any time.
His surgeons worked through exhaustion, his mother clung to faith when she had nothing else left, and Tasfin himself fought through pain and fear to stay alive. Today, as movement slowly returns to his reattached hands, so does his future.
Tasfin’s recovery is more than just a medical victory, it’s a reflection of how determination, skill, teamwork, and compassion can rewrite a life’s destiny. It is proof that Bangladesh’s healthcare system, often criticized for limitations, is also capable of extraordinary achievements when expertise and humanity meet.
For Tasfin and his family, this surgery represents not just restored hands, but restored hope. And for Bangladesh, it marks a new chapter in its medical progress.
Source: Bangla Vision
