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 shortly after treatment, helping to repair the brain. The researchers are looking forward to the effectiveness these treatments will have for many children suffering from brain damage.
This is exciting news in the treatment for baby brain injuries and children with cerebral palsy. If you or someone you know has been injured or suffered a through a traumatic birth and believe it was due to the negligence of the hospital and its staff, call our birth trauma lawyer at (800) 460-0606 today. You may be entitle to compensation.
Coppolino Dodd Krebs LLP – Birth Trauma Attorneys
