Using a toe for a thumb: Lawn mower accident results in 6-year-old's new digit

In May 2024, 6-year-old Dawson Yacks was riding on his mom’s lap on their family riding mower after being picked up from the bus stop.

As the pair came back, Dawson slid off his mom’s lap, putting his hands out to stop him, causing one hand to get caught in the blade of the mower.

Dawson’s mom, Catrina Yacks, quickly stopped the mower, grabbed Dawson and called 911.

When the emergency response team came, a tourniquet was made for his hand and Dawson was taken to a local hospital.

Upon arrival, the family was told Dawson would have the best chance of saving his hand if they got him to see a hand surgery specialist quickly.

The family chose the University of Michigan Health C.S. Mott Children's Hospital, where Dawson was taken by ambulance as soon as their decision was made.

“As soon as we arrived, we were seen by nurses, anesthesiologists and child advocacy,” said Yacks. “They all got to work assessing the situation while making sure that Dawson was not in pain and wasn’t scared.”

In that care team that the Yacks met was Kevin Chung, M.D., a hand surgery specialist at U-M Health who assessed Dawson and began working on a plan to rebuild his hand.

Getting a new thumb

The assessment revealed that the accident had not only made his thumb, index and middle fingers unsavable, but it had stripped the skin tissue around his thumb leaving the wrist bone exposed.

“After assessing Dawson, my goal was to save the remaining ring and little finger and then devise a plan to use one of his second toes as his thumb,” said Chung.

“However, in order to use his toe as a thumb, we needed to rebuild the tissue around the thumb area so his hand could properly house the new digit.”

Dawson’s hand needed extra help rebuilding the tissue; only doing a skin graft wasn't going to be enough. This resulted then in a two-part procedure.

SEE ALSO: Using creative surgical solutions for creative patients 

The first procedure was done soon after Dawson arrived at Mott.

Chung and his team first attached Dawson’s hand to his abdomen to allow it to begin the process of growing new skin tissue.

During the procedure they also repaired his ring and little fingers and cleaned the wound to prevent any infections.

Once the hand was healed enough, the team removed the hand and took skin tissue from Dawson’s abdomen to attach around the area where his thumb was.

After the second procedure, Dawson spent about eight weeks recovering while the new skin tissue on his hand healed.

Due to the amount and depth of the skin tissue taken from his abdomen, Dawson needed to stay in a wheelchair for it to heal well.

After his first recovery period was over, Chung and his team began the third surgery to replace Dawson’s thumb.

To recreate the thumb, Chung took the second toe from Dawson’s right foot.

With the new skin tissue having taken to the hand, the toe was able to attach to the thumb area and begin connecting the blood vessels, nerves, tendons and bone to make the new thumb operational.

“When the nerves connect the new thumb grows, the toe gets sensation from the hand and will feel like a new thumb,” said Chung.

“The brain will accept this new thumb as another digit and send commands to it to move and grow just as it did the previous thumb.”

The procedure was a success, and Dawson was sent back home after a five day stay post-operation.

“We were so impressed by what Dr. Chung was able to do when it came to replacing his thumb,” said Yacks. “Having his thumb back means that Dawson’s hand can function better which will be crucial as he grows.”

Life with a new thumb

Back at home, Dawson goes to hand therapy twice a week to help strengthen his new thumb as well as the other fingers that underwent repairs.

Despite his multiple surgeries, Yacks says that Dawson hasn’t felt held back at all.

“He is now seven years old, really interested in soccer and plans to play in the fall. He is even able to play video games with his new thumb,” she said.

“There are small everyday things he needs some assistance with, such as buttons and zippers but his skill with these is constantly improving thanks to physical therapy.”

Yacks encourages parents to be extra cautious of where their children are in relation to lawn mowers to prevent accidents like Dawson’s.

See ALSO: 7 essential lawn mower tips to know

“Lawn mower accidents can happen quickly and cause lots of damage,” said Yacks. 

“My family and I hope that Dawson’s story can serve as a reminder to all parents that it is important to use safe lawn mower practices around children of all ages to avoid accidents like this one.”

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