27 June 2023 , 15:40
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A little boy who nearly faced amputation after he was hit by a car is now learning to walk again.
Brave Denis-Jack Ward was just four when a car hit him after running into the road ahead of his horrified family in 2021.
So bad were the youngster's injuries, doctors discussed having to remove his leg and were unsure if he'd ever walk again.
Denis-Jack's leg was broken wide open in a horrific open fracture, with the skin scraped from his leg, when he was struck while running across the road to get a slushie.
But now aged six, the schoolboy has defied bleak expectations for how his injuries could affect him, and is back at school full-time and even looking forward to a summer of playing football, golf and riding his bike.
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The youngster was in a wheelchair for five months and doctors were unsure if he'd walk again (NHS Lothian / SWNS)
Denis-Jack enjoys sports again after getting back on his feet following a car accident in 2021 (NHS Lothian / SWNS)"My very best memory was when I stood and walked for the first time again," said the youngster, after initially going back to school part-time with a walking frame.
"I had a big smile on my face and I was so happy.
"When I grow up, I want to be a superhero, but I know they don't exist, so I'm going to have a superhero job instead!"
Mum Dionne Leadbetter, from East Lothian, said the family were crossing the road to get an iced treat and watched aghast as her son was knocked down before their eyes.
"By the time I went to grab him, a car had already hit him," she said.
"Denis-Jack collapsed on the ground, and I absolutely crumbled.
"When the ambulance arrived, they cut away his trousers and his leg swelled up to three times the size."
Denis-Jack was rushed to hospital in Edinburgh where he would go on to have four operations on his leg in the space of a month, fixing the broken bone and carrying out a skin graft.
Denis-Jack says he wants to be a superhero when he grows up (NHS Lothian / SWNS)
The football-mad schoolboy is now back on the pitch (NHS Lothian / SWNS)The four-year-old was in a wheelchair for five months and had to re-learn to walk, with his love of football and being outdoors driving his will to get back on his feet.
"A huge part of his recovery was his determination to get back to what he loved doing most," Dionne, 31, added.
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"We are so grateful to all of the team at the hospital.
"They were all amazing. They have given my little boy his life back."
Dad, Darren Ward, 38, said "Watching him get his dressings changed was really difficult.
"I hated seeing him in so much pain, but Denis-Jack has incredible mental strength and he's the most caring, loving wee boy.
"I'm really proud of him, he's my best pal. I'm just so thankful to everyone at the hospital - it was a really horrible time.
"If it wasn't for them, I don't know how I would have got through it. I can't thank everyone enough that my little boy is still here."
Judith Montgomery, Major Trauma, Orthopaedics and Burns & Plastics Physiotherapist, NHS Lothian, has been working with Denis-Jack since the accident and managed to get him back on his feet.
She said: "Denis-Jack is an incredibly resilient boy. From the outset, it was really unclear as to whether he would be able to keep his leg and the fact that he's now fully recovered with not even a limp is incredible.
"He will always have the scars on his leg but now they just remind him how hard he has worked towards being able to walk again."