The doctors at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia truly are amazing and the latest example caused a standing ovation at Tuesday night’s Baltimore Orioles game at Camden Yards. Prior to the game, nine-year-old Zion Harvey threw out the first pitch to Orioles outfielder Adam Jones.
While a nine-year-old throwing out the first pitch would be a fun story on its own, Harvey’s path to that moment made it special.
Roughly one year ago, Harvey—a Maryland resident—became the first child in history to undergo successful bilateral hand transplant surgery at CHOP in Philadelphia. When Harvey was two, he developed an infection that led to his hands and feet amputated. Years later, the doctors at CHOP helped remake his life and what happened in Baltimore on Tuesday night possible.
Approximately three years ago, Pattie began the search for prosthetic hands for her son. She approached Dr. Scott Kozin, Chief of Staff at Shriners Hospital for Children in Philadelphia who, along with his partner, Dr. Dan Zlotolow, offered a far more progressive suggestion…Vascularized Composite Allotransplantation…make Zion the youngest recipient of a bilateral hand transplant.Zion has already been successfully fitted for prosthetics for his feet and utilizes them to the fullest.