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Lung recipient recovers from near-fatal accident September 15, 2002 By DEBBIE GILBERT
After Gainesville resident Len Geiger received a
double-lung transplant in May, he felt great. Formerly tied to an oxygen tank
because of a hereditary form of emphysema, he began working out at the gym every
day.
Geiger felt so energetic that he bought a mountain bike to ride to and from
the gym. But that purchase led to a devastating setback, and the 43-year-old now
faces months of rehabilitation.
"I had a serious bike wreck the third week of August," he said.
"Until the accident, I had been doing incredibly well."
Geiger's close friend Ted Tuck, owner of Pro Music in Gainesville and an avid
cyclist, took him one afternoon to the bike trails near Gainesville College.
"I picked one of the least difficult trails, and he was having a
blast," Tuck said.
"It was just a fluke. He hit the brake, his front tire locked up, and he
flew over the handlebars."
The average person would have suffered only bruises. But Geiger's bones had
been weakened from eight years of taking prednisone to combat his illness. He
already has had both hips replaced. When he hit the ground after being thrown
from the bike, his left femur shattered in three places.
At Northeast Georgia Medical Center, orthopedic surgeons used wire and metal
plates to reconstruct the bone in his leg. But the stress of surgery was
apparently too much for Geiger's body, still recovering from the transplant.
His immune system suddenly began to reject his new lungs. Near death, Geiger
was rushed to the University of Virginia, where he had received the transplant
three months earlier. After being pumped with massive doses of anti-rejection
drugs for a week, he survived the crisis.
"The rejection situation has improved," he said. "They think
the lungs can be saved."
Tuck said the episode was a big wake-up call for Geiger's friends and family.
"We were all scared to death," he said. "Everything seemed
fine before the (leg) operation, but then almost overnight he was in critical
condition.
"I felt horrible about it, but I've learned a very valuable lesson:
Don't take anything for granted."
Now home in Gainesville, Geiger plans to start rehabilitation as soon as the
pain in his leg becomes tolerable.
"I can't have any weight-bearing exercise for three months," he
said. "I'm using a wheelchair because it hurts so much to move."
But no matter how much it hurts, Geiger intends to be a groomsman at Tuck's
wedding Saturday.
"Len is the toughest, most persistent man I've ever met," Tuck
said. "We're thrilled that he's going to be able to be in the wedding. It's
not important whether he's standing or sitting down, as long as he's
there."
In the meantime, Geiger is doing some soul-searching. Realizing that certain
activities might be risky for someone with a double-lung transplant and two
artificial hips, he'll try other forms of exercise once he recovers.
"I run the Web site for Elachee (Nature Science Center), but I've never
hiked on their trails," he said. "When I get better, I'd like to do
that."
What about the mountain bike? "I'm selling it," Geiger said.
"It's sitting here in my living room, laughing at me."
E-mail: dgilbert@gainesvilletimes.com
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