First Child Ever to Get Double-Hand Transplant Goes Home After Successful Surgery

The first child ever to get a bilateral hand transplant has been released from the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, last Wednesday.

Zion Harvey has received two new hands, but his unwavering spirit is reportedly what has captured the attention of many people around the world.

The 8-year old lost his limbs at the age of two due to a life-threatening infection. Harvey was able to triumph over the deadly infection, however he had to undergo a kidney transplant and must stay on immunosuppressant drugs for the rest of his life.

But as TODAY writes, "tragic medical history made Zion the ideal candidate to be the first kid in the world to get new hands."

Zion went under the knife in July. The double-hand transplant took 11 hours to complete. Since then, Zion has been going through physical and occupational therapy.

According to Zion's doctors, he recovered "remarkably well."

Zion "sailed through the procedure and has done remarkably well with postoperative therapy," said the transplant teams lead surgeon, Dr. Scott Levine.

"He's just a remarkable lad. Today he was playing with his action figures and baking cookies with a whisk, doing all sorts of things with his hands we never dreamed he would be able to do within a few weeks of surgery," Dr. Levine told NBC News.

Zion's successful recovery was no surprise to his mother, Pattie Ray. "The challenges facing Zion are new, but his determination should overcome them. He's already done so many amazing things," she said in a statement.

The young boy was recovering so well, he went home playing with action figures.

Dr. Levin said the hospital is currently has a team of neurologists studying how his brain is now recognizing his new hands. "Parts of his brain may be asleep or underdeveloped because he hasn't used hands in years. His brain is probably trying to catch up to the fact he has new hands."

The successful progression of Zion at this time indicates a possibility of surgical treatment for many children with extremity issues. The hospital has received nearly 200 inquiries from parents of children facing similar problems.

"This is an entire world that is new to us and has opened up tremendous opportunities to understand child development and the development of the brains of children with different extremity issues." What exciting news for science and children facing the same challenges. Hopefully there will be more good news to come fro this amazing boy and the team who made his new hands a possibility.