The Italian started to use his paralyzed arm again thanks to a nerve from his leg that was transplanted in an Italian hospital, for the first time in the world.
The operation was performed on Tuesday at a hospital in Turin “for the first time in the world”, according to a statement from the local health agency.
The patient is a 55-year-old social worker who, after a traffic accident, lost part of his left leg and had complete damage to the brachial plexus of his left arm.
The procedure carried out by doctors was described as “pioneering”, and involved the transfer of part of the sciatic nerve to the upper body.