Researchers in Germany and Korea are making headway in an effort to treat children who suffer from cerebral palsy and brain damage by studying a two-and-a-half-year old boy who had to be resuscitated after he went into cardiac arrest in 2008. During the time between his heart attack and resuscitation, the boy suffered severe brain damage that left him in a vegetative state with a minimal chance of survival. Recently, the researchers administered a treatment using the boy’s umbilical cord stem cells to treat the brain damage. Two months after the treatment, the boy learned to move and speak simple sentences. The process uses blood extracted from the umbilical cord after birth. Researchers have found that the blood inside the umbilical cord contains all the normal elements of blood but is very rich in hematopoietic stem cells. These particular stem cells tend to migrate towards the brain in large numbers…
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New Stem Cell Research Is Helping Children Who Suffer From Brain Damage
June 3, 2013New Technique Could Reduce Birth Defects For In Vitro Fertilization Recipients
May 29, 2013British researchers are studying a new technique for in vitro fertilization (IVF) that may increase the chances of a successful birth. The current average of a successful birth from IVF is 25 percent, but the new treatment is supposed to increase the chances to 75 percent. The new technique uses time lapse imaging to closely check the embryos and distinguish between those with chromosomal abnormalities and those without them. The current procedure for IVF is to check the developing embryo up to six times over five days. The new technique takes 5,000 snapshots over the same amount of time. Researchers say the new technique will increase the chance of a successful birth, consequently lowering the chances of experiencing a traumatic birth event like a miscarriage. The test also reduces the risk of birth defects such as Down’s syndrome. Professor Simon Fishel, managing director of CARE Fertility Group, said the treatment…
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Doctor With Cerebral Palsy Able to Empathize With Children Who Have Cerebral Palsy
May 24, 2013A doctor in St. Louis is not only offering hope to her cerebral palsy patients, but empathy as well. Dr. Jan Brunstrom-Hernandez founded the Cerebral Palsy Center at St. Louis Children’s Hospital 15 years ago, she also has cerebral palsy. Dr. Brunstrom-Hernandez says she was inspired at an early age to become a doctor because she was surrounded by them all the time as a child. However, she initially had no desire to treat people with cerebral palsy. She said her hesitation was due to the fact that she did not want to be around people that reminded her of her own condition. She was prompted to begin a clinic in 1997 after a fellow colleague, Dr. Mike Noetzel, also at the St. Louis Children’s Hospital, suggested she start one. She said she was doing research on cerebral palsy when she realized treatment had not progressed much since her diagnosis…
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