The Lviv Superhuman Center empowered war amputees who were branded untreatable by multi-limb loss.
Denys’ doctors said he would never be able to walk again.
The Ukrainian soldier lost three limbs due to a war injury. This case was considered difficult by Europe’s best medics.
The situation changed when Ukraine’s top-notch facility took on his recovery. It set a new standard for war-rehabilitation.
According to Ukraine’s Ministry of Health in April 2024, 20,000 people will need prosthetics because of the war. This number is expected to increase due to the ongoing hostilities, and the threat of landmines. The actual number could be higher as many people have lost more than one limb, requiring multiple prostheses.
The Superhuman Center takes on this challenge by providing cutting-edge prosthetics for Ukrainian soldiers, civilians, and children who have been injured in the war.
Denys Kryvenko is one of them. His drive to recover was matched by the center’s high-quality expertise.
One in a million recovery cases
Andriy Vienskyy, the medical director at Superhumans, says, “Look, there’s Denys.” He is pointing to the patient who has one of the most difficult cases – a triple amputation.
Denys joined the 57th Infantry Brigade during the first weeks of full-scale invasion, after ensuring that his mother and younger siblings had been safely evacuated. In January 2023 he was shot at while defending Bakhmut from Russian forces. Bakhmut was a hotspot in the war.
Denys, his comrades and themselves were covering the retreating Ukrainian units from the battle for Bakhmut that had grabbed the attention of the world.
He lost both his arms and legs in that firefight.
“I was still aware. Denys recalls that his comrades carried him 2.5 kilometers (1.2miles) to the evacuation site on a stretcher. “On the way I was laughing and tearing up, saying goodbye to them, and singing the Ukrainian national anthem.”
Denys began to sit up about five days after his resuscitation. He then filled out a Superhuman Center application.
The veteran was the first to arrive at the facility when it opened in 2023. In March, he traveled to Germany with the center’s prosthetists who were there to learn advanced techniques.
The Superhumans medical doctor recalls how Denys’s story threw European prostitutes for a loop.
Andrii Vilenskyi, speaking to Euromaidan Press, said that German doctors had told him it was unlikely Denys would be able to walk. “It was the very first time that our German colleagues said it was impossible. But we decided to try it with him — and he walked.”
Vilenskyi admits that Denys’s recovery was a difficult battle.
He adds, “We have achieved a lot in the last one and a quarter years.” “You have seen for yourself how he walks by himself. He is now living an active life.”
Empowering you to live anew
The Superhumans Center is unique in that it aims to give patients a more fulfilling life than they had before their injuries. The facility does not just provide prosthetics; it also provides the skills and motivation needed to embrace a new active lifestyle.
The Lviv facility, which opened in 2023, offers a wide range of services including reconstructive surgery and hearing restoration. It also provides psychological support and rehabilitation. It also has its own prosthetics laboratory, which creates custom prostheses to meet the needs of each patient.
Soon, a dental clinic and an educational center will be launched.
“We also socialize the patients — we help find new roles in their lives,” said Olha Rudneva in an interview with Forbes. “A person does not need a limb or an arm to do something; they need it to go somewhere.”
Andriy Stabnitser, founder of the facility, says: “This is not just a prosthetics center; it’s also a war trauma centre.” He explains that this center deals with war traumas such as limb loss, concussions and hearing loss.
All services are provided free of charge. Philanthropists have funded both the construction of the center and its ongoing operation.
Around 45% of the budget of the center comes from Howard G. Buffett. He is the chairman and CEO of Howard G. Buffett Foundation. The foundation has committed more than $800 million in Ukraine since 2022.
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