When Rodney was just 35 years old, his primary care physician at another health system noticed he had a heart murmur and diagnosed Rodney with moderate mitral valve prolapse. Rodney’s condition—in which one of the heart’s valves doesn’t close properly and allows blood to back up into the heart—seemed manageable. He continued regular checkups and stayed active by hiking, interval training, and scuba diving. He was living life without major limitations or symptoms.  

“What I’d tell my former self is: Don’t give up,” says Zach, who lost both of his legs in a workplace accident in 2019. Zach underwent osseointegration with WashU Medicine Physicians at Barnes-Jewish Hospital, a groundbreaking surgery to implant prosthesis directly into a patient’s bone.