Tag Archives: selective dorsal rhizotomy
Birth Trauma Attorneys Examine Costly Cerebral Palsy Surgery
In September, we blogged about selective dorsal rhizotomy (SDR), a type of spinal surgery that allows children with cerebral palsy to walk. The surgery, while expensive, often produces successful results. After raising over £60,000, a family in the United Kingdom can send their son to the United States for the SDR operation. Nicholas Bamforth, 9, has cerebral palsy. He and his family hope that the SDR operation will allow him to walk and possibly play football for his school team, fulfilling a lifelong dream. His family is planning on flying to the U.S. and staying for five weeks while he recovers from the operation. His family is still raising money to cover his physiotherapy that will likely continue long after the operation. His mother Catherine said that the relief effort came at the perfect time. “Nicholas has really deteriorated this year and he is in a wheelchair pretty much all…
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Posted in Cerebral Palsy Tagged cerebral palsy, cerebral palsy lawyer, children with cerebral palsy, sdr, selective dorsal rhizotomy, treatment for cerebral palsy Comments Off on Birth Trauma Attorneys Examine Costly Cerebral Palsy Surgery
Surgery Options for Cerebral Palsy
On Monday we wrote about selective dorsal rhizotomy, a treatment to improve muscle control for children with spastic cerebral palsy. While there is no cure for cerebral palsy, there are surgery options for improving quality of life. Orthopedic Surgery Many children with cerebral palsy undergo orthopedic surgery in their early years. Orthopedic surgery attempts to correct stiff muscles and allow the child to walk. Some critics of this surgery point out that there is little follow-up data available, and that some benefits are temporary. Patients usually require multiple variations of this operation. Selective Dorsal Rhizotomy For people with spastic cerebral palsy, abnormal components of the nervous system send incorrect signals to muscles, resulting in spasms. In this costly procedure (about $30,000), the surgeon cuts the nerves responsible for sending these malformed signals. While this procedure is usually successful in children, more research is needed to determine if it can help…
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Posted in Cerebral Palsy Tagged cerebral palsy attorneys, cerebral palsy lawyers, intrathecal baclofen, orthopedic surgery, selective dorsal rhizotomy Comments Off on Surgery Options for Cerebral Palsy
Nerve Procedure Offers Hope for Children with Cerebral Palsy
The above video features Christian Izquierdo, a 16-year-old from Florida. When he was eight months old, he was diagnosed with cerebral palsy. Activities like running and jumping seemed forever out-of- reach – until a doctor in St. Louis changed his life. Thanks to a procedure called a selective dorsal rhizotomy, Christian can run and jump. Doctors have also noticed an improvement in his speech. A New Life Dr. T. S. Park has performed the procedure on nearly 2,400 children with cerebral palsy. Search for the surgery on YouTube and you will find several videos of children running and walking after the operation – many of them performed by Dr. Park. The surgery is not cheap – Christian’s cost nearly $32,000, and it is not covered by most out-of-state insurance companies. His family set up a website called Christian’s Crusade to raise money. The Procedure Many parents agree that the selective…
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Posted in Cerebral Palsy Tagged cerebral palsy, cerebral palsy lawyers, selective dorsal rhizotomy, spastic cerebral palsy Comments Off on Nerve Procedure Offers Hope for Children with Cerebral Palsy
