Andres Arauz, 18, has a prosthetic arm — but that hasn’t stopped him from discovering his impressive musical talents.

  • Andres Arauz was a longtime Tampa Shriners patient
  • 18-year-old Ecuadorian has had arm prosthetic adjusted yearly
  • He marked final fitting with a musical performance

Arauz has been a patient at Tampa Shriners Hospital since he was a toddler.

Doctors there said a condition called amniotic band syndrome caused him to be born without his left arm.

With occupational therapy and yearly adjustments to his prosthetic arm, Arauz was still able to learn to play both the piano and guitar.

"It's great to just play,” Arauz said.

The young musician lives in Ecuador with his family but travels to Tampa for appointments with a doctor. Because he's now 18, Tuesday marked his last one.

"It's kind of sad to see him go,” prosthetist Bryan Sinnot said. “It's like your own kid graduating from high school. You know he's moving out into the world."

As a farewell, Arauz played for staff and patients one last time. The young man said he is sad to say goodbye but eager to move forward.

Arauz said he has one semester left at the conservatory he attends in Ecuador and then plans to attend college.