A Long Island boy who was born without a left hand achieved superhero status this week.
Five-year-old Jordan Marotta has become the youngest patient ever to receive a cutting-edge bionic arm, painted in Iron Man red and gold, at his own request.
“He was walking down the streets of Manhattan, throwing his new hand in the air and yelling, ‘Taxi!'” Jordan’s mother, Ashley Marotta, 38, told The Washington Post.
The excited mother of three drove Jordan from her Dix Hills home to Open Bionics’ Park Avenue offices on Wednesday, where she fitted her son with the “Hero” prosthetic arm.
The arms are usually reserved for older children.
But Jordan’s physical development and mental maturity make him the perfect candidate to set a new record, said Daniel Green, a certified prosthetist with Open Bionics.
Jordan’s non-invasive prosthesis was seamlessly molded to fit and be removed from the end of his left arm, what he and his family call his “prosthesis.”
Electrodes and sensors detect muscle contractions and respond with appropriate hand and finger movements. It has a 14-hour rechargeable battery and takes about a month to manufacture.
Then the real hard work begins: when Jordan takes control of the arm.
“It takes some effort,” Green says, “and it’s probably not something your average 5-year-old can do, at least not as quickly as Jordan.”
Ashley found out 20 weeks into her pregnancy that her son would be born without a hand.
Always a brave kid, Jordan had a fairly normal childhood up until that point: pitching Jim Abbott-style for the local Little League team and being a standout karate player.
But lately he had begun to interpret his condition more clearly.
“Things have been a little emotional lately with Jordan really coming to understand and know that he’s different from other people,” Ashley said.
“There were so many times when my son would sit there and ask me, ‘Mom, why can’t I reach out?'”
Now the conversation is moving in a more inspiring and positive direction.
After coming home from the doctor’s office this week, the excited toddler went first to school, where he proudly showed off to his classmates, then went to his grandparents’ house, enjoyed a drive on his scooter, and then went to Chuck E. Cheese’s.
“He seems to be feeling really good. He’s very confident. He was glowing,” Marotta said.
