Overview
- Alessandro “Sandro” Apuzzo, 15, walked out of Miller Children's & Women's Hospital on Wednesday to cheers from family, friends, medical staff, and the lifeguard who rescued him.
- The Woodrow Wilson High School water polo player was initially paralyzed after diving headfirst into a sandbar on July 4 in Long Beach.
- He received trauma and neurosurgical care followed by intensive inpatient rehabilitation, including near-daily physical therapy sessions.
- Physicians say he still faces at least six more months of therapy, though his prognosis is positive.
- Apuzzo notes lingering hypersensitivity on his left side and plans to return to school in February, expressing hopes to resume water activities in the future.