Glen Burnie Teen 1 Of 10 In World With 'Robo Hand'

BALTIMORE (WJZ) ―We all owe a lot to advances in technology, but high tech changes in the field of prosthetics have one Maryland teenager doing things he never thought possible.

Derek Valcourt has that young man's bionic story.

Eighteen-year-old Michael Waldron wears more than just a trick up his sleeve.

"I call it my prosthetic , robo-hand whatever comes to my mind," he said.

The Glen Burnie teen is one of the first 10 people in the world with a new kind of bionic hand—completely robotic.

"People asked me if I can crush things with it; how strong is it?" Waldron said.

A birth defect left him with only a thumb on his right hand and what doctors call nubbins instead of four fingers. But Michael learned to adapt, playing musical instruments, and he became a lacrosse goalie at North County High School.

"It never stopped me," Waldron said. "I never thought that it would. There's very few things that I can't do."

"You want your kid to do what every other kid does," said Waldron's mother Fran Wingate.

But Wingate never gave up hope that someday technology would help her son.

"I did random Google search; up pops a company called Touch Bionics," Wingate said.

The Ohio prosthetics company developed a partial bionic hand custom fitted especially for Waldron. And within minutes he was doing things he'd never done before.

Derek Valcourt: When you first put this on it had to be a great feeling?

Michael Waldron: Oh yeah. A lot of people don't realize how much mechanics are involved with picking up a bottle, opening it, pouring it, picking up a cup, drinking. That's when I knew that this would work.

"The look on his face . . . I mean my heart just exploded because for a lot of people that's not a big deal, but for him it is," Wingate said.

The device picks up electronic pulses sent by nerves in Wingate's arm allowing him to pinch, grasp, and pull.

"I like being able to do things that I've never done before," Waldron said.  "I kinda wanna try everything once see if I like it."

Derek Valcourt: How has this changed your life?

Michael Waldron: I''m able to do a lot of different things but in the end. When I go to bed, I take it off, plug it in just like a cell phone. I'm still me with or without it.

But with it, he's heading off to college, grabbing hold of his future with both hands.

"I'm going to school for mechanical engineering," Waldron said. "You have to be able to use both hands. So, it's helping me to realize my dream."

"If this gives him the ability to pursue a career that he loves, that's the best thing in the world," Wingate said.

"It's kinda like hitting the lottery," Waldron said. "I'm very thankful."

As always, high-tech can come with a high price. When you add in all required physical therapy and maintenance with the devices, they can cost in the range of $40-60,000--a cost some, but not all, insurance companies will cover.