You may have heard of Claire Macdonel, the Texas teen who made national headlines after her left hand was bitten by a barracuda while vacationing with her family in Turks and Caicos this past July. While most of those headlines focused on the rarity of the bite itself, what does the recovery and return to regular life actually look like?
Once Claire returned to the states, she had surgery with Dr. Hannah Dineen, a hand and wrist orthopedic surgeon with UTHealth Houston and Memorial Hermann.
“I was pretty surprised, I haven’t had a patient who had a barracuda injury before,” said Dr. Dineen. “But once she told me her story, it made sense….We are basically trying to restore the anatomy as it was to start with.”
Claire’s surgery is followed with extensive physical therapy with a specialized hand and wrist program. Following therapy, Claire spoke to her experience and the adjustment back to school and her reluctance to be known solely as the “barracuda girl.”
“My friends are checking up on me every day,” Claire said. “When I walk in the hallways…people make a space for me and move. People have been gentle because they’re aware of how bad it was….I would say I am probably at about 70%. I am able to do a lot of stuff that I wasn’t able to do when I first got out of surgery.”
Claire is not able to perform in the athletic activities she initially wanted, but she has hopes of working as the volleyball manager this season.
Content is property of Memorial Hermann Health System.