A five-year-old boy born with one hand has become the youngest ever person to be fitted with a bionic arm.
Jordan Marotta was left in a state of “pure joy” when he received his Iron Man-themed ‘Hero Arm’ prosthetic last week.
And heartwarming footage showed how just hours later, he was able to whizz around on his scooter while holding the handlebars with the prosthetic’s life-like grip.
“It’s really fun and it’s cool,” said Jordan. “I like to play with the hand and make it open and close.”
His mother Ashley Marotta approached Open Bionics, the company that makes the
kes the prosthetics, when Jordan started questioning why his hand had not ‘grown back’.
kes the prosthetics, when Jordan started questioning why his hand had not ‘grown back’.
She was told he was likely too young to receive one of their mechanical limbs, they let Jordan try out an arm to see if he could use it.
Following this successful trial they later agreed to fit him at their offices in nearby New York City, two years earlier than most youngsters.
Jordan Marotta before he got his new bionic arm – family photo / SWNS
“As soon as we left with Jordan’s Hero Arm, he was running around with so much confidence, trying to hail New York taxis,” said the Long Island mom.
“You can’t even put a number on how amazing that is. It is worth its weight in gold.
The first thing he wanted to do when he got home was ride his scooter—to finally hold on with two hands.
As for Jordan, he has some advice for all of us in the sweet video below: “Don’t give up. Just don’t give up.”
Jordan Marotta with his new Iron Man Hero Arm – SWNS
Ashley found out that Jordan was missing his left hand during a 20-week pregnancy scan in hospital, and there was no specific medical cause doctors could point to. She initially felt upset about his prognosis but took comfort from learning about other children who had thrived in similar situations.
“No child is ‘perfect’, but you hear the expression all the time, ‘ten fingers and ten toes’, and you don’t really know what that means until you have to.
“Luckily, I was able to do some research and reach out and find a lot of really good resources, and I think that helped prepare me for his arrival and what to expect.
“I had seen a lot of videos of other kids like him, and there was a sense of relief that the journey might not be easy, but he’ll be ok.”
As Jordan became more aware of his limb difference, asking questions like, ‘Mummy, how come I don’t have two hands?’ she got in touch with UK-based Open Bionics.
“Because we’re in New York, and they have a satellite office, I was like ‘What’s the worst that can happen? Can we meet with the prosthetist and give it a try?’
“Jordan is on the bigger side for his age. So I really sold them on his muscles.”
Ashley said she was lucky that her health insurance covered the cost of the arm, and said Jordan was already managing to use it in his day-to-day life.
LOOK: Born Without an Arm She Now Has a Realistic Prosthetic With Painted-on Freckles and Acrylic Nails
“I sent a video of him, and they said, ‘I can’t believe how quickly he’s picking it up’.” Watch the first moments below… Source: https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/5-year-old-boy-becomes-youngest-ever-to-receive-a-bionic-arm-and-is-overjoyed-to-ride-a-scooter-with-2-hands/
