LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The Louisville surgeon who helped perform the world's first successful hand transplant on a patient died at 92 over the weekend.
Now, the patient who received that transplant is reflecting on how Dr. Joseph Kutz changed his life.
"It's a sad time to be talking about it, but Joe Kutz mean an awful lot to me and everybody else who was part of this team and he's going to be sorely missed by all of us," Matthew Scott said.
Scott, who lost his left hand during a firecracker incident in 1985, became Kutz's patient in 1999.
When he lost his hand, Scott said he realized he took for granted the little things, such as hand shakes and clapping. He was also a paramedic and used his hands on a daily basis.
About eight months after the transplant surgery, sensation slowly came back into his hand, Scott said.
"Yes, I have sensation in my hand. I have the protective sensation of pain, heat, cold, I can feel rough and smooth. I can feel sharp and dull. But what I cannot do is, if I were to close my eyes and you were to put a baseball in my hand or an orange, I would not be able to tell the difference. I don't have what they call that fine discrimination," he said.
Kutz became world-renowned for his work over the years, and trained countless hand fellows from all over.
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- Louisville surgeon, Dr. Joseph Kutz, who helped perform first successful hand transplant, dies at 92
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