“Shriners Kid” Luke became a patient at our facility earlier this year after a motorbike accident destroyed the tendons in the front of his left leg. During his initial clinic evaluation, our medical team could tell at first glance that Luke had a “foot drop,” meaning he had difficulty lifting the front part of his foot. To confirm this diagnosis, Luke had an in-depth evaluation in the motion analysis center (MAC) at Shriners Children’s Florida, and it was then that plans for Luke’s surgery began to take shape.
“Using the data we collected from his gait lab analysis, we found that the tendon that had been destroyed in the lower part of Luke’s leg was still intact higher up in the leg,” said Joseph Khoury, M.D., director of the MAC. “Knowing this, we used a tendon graft to attach the remnants of the original leg tendons to a bone in his foot.” This surgical intervention restored Luke’s ability to better move and manipulate his ankle. Without it, he would have had to wear a leg brace for the rest of his life.
Post-surgery, Luke’s mother, Alexandra, spoke about how great it was to see her son getting back to his normal routine. “He loves to run, and thanks to [Shriners Children's], now he can walk again,” she said. “He just joined soccer and is very excited to start playing, and now he will be able to do it all without [tripping, falling] and dragging his foot.”
Luke also loves playing video games and hopes to become a professional gamer one day. He said he enjoys popular favorites such as Among Us and Minecraft, but without a doubt, Roblox is Luke’s favorite game. “You can create your own characters, and play games online with your friends,” he said.
When he is offline, you can easily find Luke trying to incorporate his two best friends – his dogs, Luna and Loki – in whatever activity he is doing. The fourth-grader loves learning about animals in school, so it is no surprise he wants his sweet pups to tag along with him wherever he goes. Whether he is simply taking a power nap or exploring the neighborhood on a bike ride, Luna and Loki are his go-to sidekicks.
Luke enjoys reading and has an amazing book collection. He loves Dogman the most, citing the Mothering Heights story in the hero series as his favorite. He also loves anything and everything having to do with cars, and can quickly list fun facts about them to anyone who will listen. We tested his knowledge with a Google fact check, and wow – he did not disappoint. Any idea what the fastest car in the world is? Just ask Luke! He can tell you the make and model of the car, the type of engine it has and what speeds it can reach.
The world-class care provided by our medical team combined with the innovative technology in our MAC is the reason why Luke is back “on the go,” and his motorbike accident is now a distant memory. “The [motion analysis center] is pretty cool,” Luke said. “I’m glad [Shriners Children's] used it to help fix my leg.”
He just joined soccer and is very excited to start playing, and now he will be able to do it all without [tripping, falling] and dragging his foot.
Luke is in fourth grade and loves learning about animals.
Luke’s family loves spending time new the water, building sandcastles by the shore and enjoying beautiful Sarasota sunsets.
Luke was excited to be our 100th MAC patient, and was all smiles after his post-operative analysis in our MAC.
