Doctors have performed a full face transplant on a US woman who was mauled two years ago by her friend's pet chimpanzee.

Officials at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston say they performed the transplant on Charla Nash late last month.

The surgery team under the leadership of Dr Bohdan Pomahac also performed a double hand transplant on Nash, but the hands failed to thrive and were removed.

It was the third full-face transplant performed at the hospital this year. The donor's name was not made public.

The 200-lbs pet chimpanzee, named Travis, went berserk in February 2009 after its owner asked Nash to help lure it back into her house.

It ripped off her hands, nose, lips and eyelids before being shot and killed by police.