Growing non-profit devoted to helping families of children with cerebral palsy and brain injury commits to mission of informing and supporting parents

PHILADELPHIA—Danielle’s Foundation, a growing non-profit organization dedicated to helping parents of children with cerebral palsy and brain injury, announces the publication of its new book, Getting the Therapy, Benefits, and Resources Your Child Needs: A Guide for Parents of Children with Cerebral Palsy and Brain Injury.

Authored by Richard P. Console Jr., one of the volunteers at Danielle’s Foundation, the book was written to help parents navigate the complexities and challenges associated with successfully raising children with brain injury and cerebral palsy.

The comprehensive, 176-page guide includes the following topics:

• Understanding your child’s diagnosis, and what it means for the future
• Funding your child’s care
• Securing effective and cutting-edge therapies
• Negotiating successfully with your insurance company
• Demystifying the often confusing world of government benefits
• Ensuring your child receives the education he or she deserves
• Estate planning for families of special needs children

“My reasons for writing this book are personal,” said Console, who helped found Danielle’s Foundation in memory of Danielle Vick, the daughter of a friend who passed away in 2008 from complications associated with anoxic brain damage at just 4 years old. “While Danielle’s life was short, it was incredibly inspirational, and though she is no longer with us, we take comfort in knowing that we can make her legacy live on forever”.

Console said the purpose of the book is to educate and empower families of children with brain injury and cerebral palsy, so they can effectively advocate for their children. While he admits that families of special needs children face difficult challenges, he feels that with knowledge and education comes hope. “Every parent wants the best for their child, but getting the benefits their child needs is not always easy, and a lot of parents don’t know where to turn for help and support. We want Danielle’s Foundation to be that guiding light to which families can turn.”

“Getting the Therapy, Benefits, and Resources Your Child Needs: A Guide for Parents of Children with Cerebral Palsy and Brain Injury” is FREE to parents who call Danielle’s Foundation today toll free at 1-800-208-3494.

Parents interested in learning more about Danielle’s Foundation, and the support and services it offers, may visit www.DaniellesFoundation.org for more information.


About Danielle’s Foundation

Danielle’s Foundation is a non-profit resource that is committed to helping families of children with cerebral palsy and brain injury gain the knowledge to secure the therapy, benefits, and resources their children need. It was created by a team of grassroots volunteers whose mission is to help parents navigate through the challenges and complexities that arise while caring for their children. Their website, www.daniellesfoundation.org, also offers hundreds of articles related to treatments and therapies, education, estate planning, and legal and financial issues. Join Danielle’s Foundation today to become a part of their support network, where parents can unite to share and exchange their knowledge to educate and empower each other via their online forum.

Contacts

Danielle’s Foundation
Kristin Testa
1-800-208-3494
press@daniellesfoundation.org

By Gerry J. Gilmore American Forces Press Service
Innovative therapies that have assisted previously comatose patients regain consciousness may be incorporated on a greater scale to treat troops diagnosed with traumatic brain injuries, a brain injury expert said Mar. 23.

Dr. Philip A. DeFina, chief executive and scientific officer at the not-for-profit International Brain Research Foundation Inc., in Edison, N.J., said that, over the past four years, electronic brain stimulation, oxygen-induction, drugs and other therapies were used to bring 43 people, including five injured soldiers, out of minimally-conscious or vegetative states. DeFina, an Army veteran, is also the chief consultant for the brain injury program at the Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation, a for-profit hospital in West Orange, N.J. He was one of several civilian and military guest speakers who attended March 23’s Reserve Officers Association-sponsored seminar in Washington, D.C., on mental health care. Brain injuries can occur because of blunt-force trauma to the head, explosions, and penetrative wounds, DeFina explained. Such injuries, he said, cause oxygen starvation in the brain, from which damage ensues. “There are a number of different types of (brain) injuries that we’ve been dealing with -- all of which have been responding to the protocols,” he said. “What we’re doing proactively, with our consortium of doctors and scientists,” he said, is “to electrically and chemically stimulate the brain.

” Other treatments employed, he said, include drugs and oxygen-inducing regimes, such as hyperbaric oxygen therapy, where the brain is inundated with oxygen. The goal, he said, is to balance the electrical and chemical activity in the brain. “Once we can stabilize electrical-chemical activity, we can optimize what the brain’s capability is at that point,” he said. Doctors can employ functional imagery techniques to examine the state of a person’s neural markers, which are the chemical and electrical patterns within the brain, he said. “We can then use that to guide us for treatment and to predict recovery,” he said. The prognosis for recovery for the five injured soldiers was “close to zero,” he said, before they underwent the treatments at the Kessler institute.

“The brain heals,” DeFina said, noting there are “different levels of improvement” among patients who’d formerly been minimally conscious and/or unresponsive. After treatment, some people “wake up and some people can communicate,” DeFina said. Other people, he said, may be able to perform simple tasks or return to work. “So, we have different levels of the ability to recover,” he said. And, applying such innovative therapies to patients with mild to moderate forms of traumatic brain injury, he said, produces “dramatic results.” Congress has set aside about $6.4 million in Fiscal Year 2009 appropriations funding, DeFina said, so that the foundation can conduct continued research and development of the new therapies in cooperation with military health care organizations. “We’re in the process of accessing those funds,” he said. The foundation has developed close relationships with several Defense Department healthcare components, DeFina said, including the Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury, headed by Army Brig. Gen. (Dr.) Loree K. Sutton. “Within the last year, we’ve had probably about 30 military doctors from the Army and Marines come visit Kessler to look at the program, including General Sutton,” DeFina said. “We’ve briefed them, we’ve given them formal presentations on all the science, and then showed them the patients that are there. “We’ve gotten a really good response from that,” he said. Many innovative therapies, DeFina said, have been used in a “stand-alone” manner to successfully treat patients with brain injuries. Yet, using those therapies in combination “is even more powerful,” he said.

By Jessica J. Burchard
The Winchester Star


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Winchester — The best option for Bonnie Justice’s early-onset Parkinson’s disease may be a two-part brain surgery and a dopamine receptor implant.

On Monday, the 48-year-old from Berryville will travel to Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore for a consultation.

“Pretty much the only option for me is surgery,” she said in a telephone interview Thursday.

Justice was diagnosed with the disease nine years ago. It has no cure.

While she has few treatment options now, that may change.

On March 9, President Barack Obama signed an executive order to expand guidelines for embryonic stem cell research and provide federal funding.

The order gives federal officials 120 days to issue new guidelines that will make a far wider range of experiments eligible for federal funding.

Meanwhile, Justice continues to take prescription medication daily. The medicine upsets her stomach, though, and does not completely alleviate her symptoms.

Early-onset Parkinson’s is a degenerative neurological disease that causes the neurons in the brain to break down, particularly the dopamine-secreting cells. Dopamine is a neuro-transmitter that sends signals controlling bodily movements.

Symptoms include muscle stiffness and weakness, difficulty swallowing and speaking, and, in some cases, tremors on one side of the body.

Early-onset Parkinson’s is classified as any instance of the disease that is diagnosed in someone under 60.

Promising research

Mariecken Fowler, a neurologist at Winchester Medical Center specializing in the treatment of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases, said no current medical treatment can stop or reverse the damage done by neurological diseases.

“It’s the death of the cells that is causing the problems,” she said.

Fowler said the brain is unable to produce replacement cells for those destroyed, and scar tissue covers the areas damaged by the diseases.

The scar tissue means that patients are unable to regain any of their bodily functions and will continue to deteriorate.

Such a breakdown is common in Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, multiple sclerosis, Huntington’s disease, and other neurological disorders.

Fowler and other neurologists are optimistic about the use of embryonic stem cell research to possibly reverse and cure these diseases.

Embryonic stem cells are prized in the scientific community because they can transform into any type of cell in the human body.

If scientists could control the metamorphosis, they might be able to create replacement tissues to treat a variety of diseases and conditions, from diabetes and Parkinson’s to paralysis caused by spinal cord injuries.

Fowler said scientists inject genetic material into the center of embryonic stem cells to dictate what the cells will eventually become. For example, DNA from a spinal cord would create a spinal cord cell.

The cells contain the same DNA as the person who receives them, which means the patient is not in danger of having her body reject the new cells, as can happen with other treatments.

Two sides to the issue

Although Justice considers brain surgery to be the most effective way to cure her Parkinson’s symptoms, she is optimistic about embryonic stem cell research.

“I think it will give a lot of people hope,” she said. “A lot of people have been frustrated by the lack of research being done.”

One such person is Rick Loughborough, who was diagnosed in November with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis — more commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease — by neurologist Paul Lyons at WMC.

“It pains me that we could have been eight years closer to a cure for my disease and others if we had had access to embryonic stem cell research,” he said in a phone interview Thursday from his home in Upperville.

During President George W. Bush’s two terms in office, his administration chose to curtail embryonic stem cell research, which limited federal funding to a small number of stem cell “lines,” or groups, that were obtained and stored before Aug. 9, 2001.

Loughborough, 44, has felt his body yielding to ALS since last summer. He is now unable to walk and uses an electric wheelchair to move around his home.

He can no longer work, and spends most of his time in his home, entertaining guests and watching television.

ALS is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that destroys nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. This leads to a failure of the brain to control body movements.

The disease has no cure. People with ALS typically live for three to five years after being diagnosed.

Loughborough said people who have not personally experienced or seen someone with a debilitating neurological disease cannot fully understand the need for embryonic stem cell research.

“I think it’s very hard to have a moral high ground on this or other issues during a crisis situation,” he said. “I think if they’re living with the issue themselves, then they can see both sides of the issue.”

“A human life”

Some people consider research on embryonic stem cells to be a sin.

“I think [the research] demoralizes the people of the United States,” said Pastor Ken H. Smith of the Open Doors Baptist Church in Clear Brook. “We need to understand that the embryo is a human life.”

He and many other religious people say they believe the idea of using cells from a human embryo for scientific research goes against biblical teachings that argue life begins at conception.

Even the thought that embryonic stem cell research might save lives and end suffering does not sway Smith.

“If you have to take a life to save a life, what are you gaining?” he asked. “I don’t think the sacrificing of an unborn [child] is worth the adding of a few years of life for someone else.”

Fowler understands concerns about using embryonic stem cells for research, but takes a more scientific view of the research.

“I understand that there are a lot of definitions of when life begins,” she said. “These balls of cells are from fertility clinics where [the frozen embryos] were going to be destroyed.”

The embryos are left over from in vitro fertilization — a process in a laboratory in which an egg is fertilized by sperm outside of the womb. A woman usually has six to eight of her eggs removed and fertilized, but does not need all of them to become pregnant.

A variety of debates

Shenandoah University philosophy professor Barry Penn Hollar said the source of the embryos should be scrutinized in the stem cell research debate.

“This stem cell discussion raises a lot more discussion than what it looks like,” he said. “It raises issues of parenting, sexuality, and moral limits on how we reproduce.”

Despite the controversy surrounding the use of embryonic stem cells for medical research, Justice is optimistic.

“I’m excited at the promise of more research.”

The Associated Press contributed some information for this report.

...www.parkinsons.org
www.alsa.org
www.aan.com

Life support machine switched off three days after skiing accident in Canada

By David Usborne in New York


Natasha Richardson poses during a photocall for the film 'Asylum' at the 55th Berlinale International Film Festival in Berlin in 2005

© More pictures
Family members confirmed late last night that Natasha Richardson, the luminous daughter of one of Britain's greatest theatrical dynasties, had died in a New York hospital three days after a skiing accident on the slopes of Quebec that had at first seemed like nothing more than a tumble.


A brief statement issued by the family spoke of the devastation felt after the 45-year-old star of stage and screen, and wife of the actor Liam Neeson, succumbed to what had been described in earlier, but unconfirmed, media reports as a severe head trauma that had quickly led to her becoming brain dead.

Richardson, who won a Tony Award for her portrayal of Sally Bowles in the 1998 revival of Cabaret in New York, was skiing with her two sons on Monday in the Mont Tremblant resort when she fell on a beginner's run. Though she at first seemed unhurt, she complained an hour later of a headache and was transferred to hospital. She was transferred to the Lenox Hill hospital in Manhattan on Tuesday.

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By yesterday, her mother, Vanessa Redgrave, her sister, Joely Richardson, and Neeson were leading a vigil by her bedside as reports suggested that she was indeed in a coma from which there was no hope of return.

Lauren Bacall was also seen at the hospital. News websites were reporting in the afternoon that the actress had already been taken off life support and the end could not be far away.

Richardson was a beloved member of a family that had the theatre and acting in the marrow of its bones. Aside from her mother, she had Corin and Lynn Redgrave as her uncle and aunt while her grandfather was the beloved master of Shakespeare and celluloid romance, Sir Michael Redgrave.

It was a pedigree that she occasionally admitted complicated her own path to self-achievement in the art.

"The names Richardson or Redgrave didn't help," she told an interviewer in 2007. "But the last thing you want is to ride any coattails, because you don't want people to be accusing you of nepotism. You want to be able to learn and practice, and not to be thrown into a spotlight before you're ready for it."

The family statement put an end to what had already been more than 48 hours of excruciating public speculation about the fate of the actress, marked by a throng of cameras and reporters who had been camped out at the entrance to Lenox Hills on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. She was flown from Montreal, where she had been receiving emergency treatment, on Tuesday.

"Liam Neeson, his sons, and the entire family are shocked and devastated by the tragic death of their beloved Natasha," the statement said. "They are profoundly grateful for the support, love and prayers of everyone, and ask for privacy during this very difficult time."

The pain for the family – for Liam, for their two boys, and for Vanessa – has only just began. It comes after Vanessa has barely finished appearing in the play The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion tracing the grief of a mother that comes with the loss of a daughter. She and Natasha, meanwhile, were preparing to work together on a revival of A Little Night Music on Broadway.

Even if she was already breathing the trade of the boards before, her commitment to the theatre became even greater after her marriage in 1994 to Neeson. Yet, it may also be true that she never quite attained the worldwide fame that she might have, not for any lack of talent but because she resisted taking mainstream Hollywood projects with the exception of Maid In Manhattan with Jennifer Lopez perhaps.

"You'll have to blame Ralph [Fiennes] for that one," she said once. "He's the most wonderful actor, a good friend; we thought we'd have a laugh." Otherwise she was often attracted to smaller, independent films.

In New York, both Richardson and Neeson had become highly popular regulars on the social and charity season, particular among some Irish-Americans. The actress also secured herself a special place in New York with her scintillating Sally Bowles. She also won wide praise on the Great White Way for performances in A Streetcar Named Desire and Closer.

Upon her fall on Monday she at first stood up, declared herself fit and returned to her hotel room. She was accompanied by a member of the resort's ski patrol, however, and was taken to hospital after admitting to a bad headache one hour later.

She had reportedly travelled to the resort on Sunday with her two boys to ski while Neeson worked on the set of his next film, Chloe, in Toronto. The couple live in New York city and have a country home in the Hudson Valley.

While there was no word from doctors last night to explain her injuries, it appeared she had suffered something close to what is sometimes called "Walk and Die Syndrome", where a head trauma appears at first to have little impact on a person but causes bleeding and brain swelling in the skull that can lead to death.

Although Richardson occasionally admitted to having had a difficult relationship with her mother as a child, in later years they became extremely close. "There's always something unexpected about her work, because she's sort of fearless," Richardson said recently. "When she hits it, then it sort of is just incandescent." She added: "She is a great mother."

Richardson was cast at the age of four by her father, Tony Richardson, as an extra in his film The Charge of the Light Brigade, but first gained serious recogntion for her performance in Anton Chekhov's The Seagull in a 1985 production in London that featured her mother and Jonathan Pryce. The performance earned her the London Drama Critics' most promising newcomer award. She was 22 at the time.

The statement confirming the death was issued by Alan Nierob, a spokesman for Neeson, who was on set in Toronto until the accident. She leaves behind two boys, Micheal and Daniel, aged 13 and 12. The boys, were reportedly also at her bedside yesterday.

Delay can be deadly: Head injuries

The normal rule in head injuries is that if there is no impaired consciousness at the time, there should be nothing to worry about. Natasha Richardson is the – desperately unlucky – exception. Even minor blows to the head can be lethal.

She had been skiing with an instructor on a "green" run, the easiest, when the accident happened. She was not wearing a helmet but there was no collision and it does not appear that any other skier was involved. She was reported to be laughing and joking after the accident, refused medical care and returned to her hotel room. Only later did she request help, an ambulance was called and she was taken to hospital.

Her condition has not been confirmed but it is likely she has suffered an extradural haematoma, a bleed in the brain that occurs when an artery is ruptured. The brain is like a blancmange inside the wooden box of the skull and a blow to the head can sever a blood vessel with relative ease.

Minor bleeds should resolve naturally but a major bleed creates a pool of blood between the meninges, the membranes that surround the brain, that presses on the brain causing a severe headache. Unless this pressure is relieved, it may lead to permanent brain damage, coma and death.

Neurologists routinely warn patients who come to hospital with head injuries that even though they appear unharmed – being fully conscious and walking around – they must return urgently if they get a headache, start vomiting or feel unwell over the next few hours.

Emergency treatment, which involves drilling a hole through the skull to drain the blood and relieve the pressure, is lifesaving and can prevent permanent damage. But it must be carried out quickly if it is to be effective. Delay can be deadly.

Jeremy Laurance, Health Editor

Mar 9, 2009 by Alexandra Shimo
China is not normally considered a world leader in surgical advances, but according to a number of its doctors (and the Canadian patients they’ve treated), it has leapfrogged ahead in stem cell treatments. A growing number of people are travelling to China for a $30,000 experimental treatment: stem cell injections. Most, like New Brunswicker Jean Christophe Haas, 40, decide to go because they have a debilitating illness and there isn’t much that Western medicine can do for them.

Haas has Machado-Joseph disease (MJD), a terminal neuromuscular disease that affects the body in a similar way to Parkinson’s, paralyzing it gradually. Although he was diagnosed 20 years ago, it took some years for the symptoms to become noticeable. At first, only his sense of balance and his coordination were affected. Then his speech began to suffer and he started slurring his words. In 2004, he had to stop work as an army mechanic because his motor skills were no longer up to par and, in the past couple of years, he started seeing double. His family felt an overwhelming sense of panic, especially because Haas’s mother had the same disease, and his grandmother died of it. His desperation was compounded by the sense that Canadian doctors had given up on him completely; one told him there was nothing to do but to accept his fate of an early death, says his wife, Cherie Haas. “It’s awful for a young man with a family to go in and hear that. It’s heartbreaking.”


Ms. Haas searched the Web and found stories of other MJD patients who seemed to have been helped by stem cell therapy at various Chinese hospitals. Many of these good news stories are posted on personal blogs or on the websites of the clinics offering the treatments. There are thousands of these testimonials, suggesting that hundreds of people go every year, says Timothy Caulfield, Canada Research Chair in Health Law and Policy at the University of Alberta, who has published studies on this issue.

Advertising on the Internet, these Chinese medical centres promise to treat a surprisingly extensive range of diseases and conditions, including ALS, autism, brain injuries, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s, spinal muscular atrophy, septo-optic dysplasia (which can cause seeing difficulties, blindness and mental retardation), spinal cord injuries and stroke. Foreigners are a major source of funds for the clinics. Some doctors like Dr. Huang Hongyun, a neuroscientist at Beijing Xishan Hospital, have treated many patients from outside China, including some from Canada, and he has published a number of papers in Chinese medical journals tracking patients pre- and post-procedure. And yet some North American doctors are critical of how the data was compiled, and skeptical of the treatments on offer.

Once Jean Haas decided to go, he told his plans to Guy Rouleau, a neurologist at Centre Hospitalier de l’Université de Montréal, who said there were slight risks of complications, and that it would probably be a waste of money. But otherwise he didn’t try to dissuade him. Raising the money for the trip was easier than expected: much of the town of Oromocto, N.B., pitched in to raise the $30,000, with neighbours’ kids shovelling driveways to help out, and the military and community organizations hosting breakfasts and fundraisers. In April 2007, he and his wife travelled to Shenzhen, China, and stayed a little more than a month. During that time, Haas had six injections of stem cells into his spine, and an intense program of physiotherapy, exercise, massage and acupuncture. The results were immediate, he says—his balance improved just a few hours after the first procedure. Back in Canada, his neurologist confirmed that Haas had indeed gotten better: he had about 10 to 15 per cent more movement, according to Rouleau, who examined him before and after the trip. It’s difficult to speculate why this occurred, but Rouleau believes the intense physiotherapy was the primary cause.

When the couple returned from China, they wrote about their experience on the Web. Word got around, and soon hundreds of people were calling them, Cherie says. A couple whose husband had a similar neurodegenerative disease even drove from Quebec to see them, and the man subsequently decided to make the stem cell trip. Another couple flew in from Taber, Alta., and decided to go to China after seeing the home videos of Haas’s progress. Those gains were partly due to the attitude of Chinese doctors, Cherie believes. They would tell Haas to push himself to his limit and even try to “retrain his brain,” she explains. “We saw miracles while we were over there. We put the word out because I know this works.”

Even if patients experience gains, it’s important to determine whether they are from the treatment, the exercise program or a more positive frame of mind. Any advances could be merely the placebo effect, as people often feel better after being treated, even if the procedure hasn’t worked and the gains won’t last, explains John Steeves, a professor at the college for interdisciplinary studies at the University of British Columbia who specializes in spinal cord injuries. Finding out whether any treatment really works requires clinical trials, and although Dr. Huang has published the results of his trials in Chinese medical journals, this data does not conform to international standards of medical analysis. Indeed, Steeves believes Huang deliberately flouts these standards to help his bottom line. “Dr. Huang has no interest doing a valid clinical trial because if it doesn’t give him good results, his income would dry up immediately,” he says from his Vancouver office.

Patients, like Haas, who seem to have been helped by stem cell treatments, are often eager to share their stories. They may become advocates for the Chinese medical centres; Haas’s story is publicized on the website of the company that organized his medical tourism trip. By contrast, it’s more difficult to find people who haven’t gotten better, or are worse after spending $30,000 on an experimental procedure. This might be because they feel duped, or because the Chinese stem cell treatment emphasizes empowerment—a “you can do it attitude.” Those who can’t “do it,” who go through the rigorous training program and end up no better off, may feel unlucky, cheated, or they may take the lack of success personally and feel that they have somehow failed.

Missouri resident Jeff Carneal, 38, doesn’t feel like a failure, but having spent so much money, he is frustrated and disappointed. He lost the use of his legs when he fell off a stepladder while fixing his father’s barn. He has spent the past six years working with different doctors trying to learn to walk again, even flying to Quito, Ecuador, for an experimental operation (nerves were removed from his legs and grafted onto his spinal cord, which cost a lot, but didn’t really help). When a Maclean’s reporter first met Carneal at the Beijing Xishan Hospital after stem cell treatment, he was enthusiastic and believed the operation he’d had a couple of weeks earlier had alleviated some of the shearing leg pain he’d felt ever since his accident. But when contacted a few weeks after he returned to the United States, he was more downbeat, and said the operation hadn’t really made any difference.

Negative outcomes aren’t widely reported, but they are more common than the Chinese hospitals would have you think, says James Guest, a professor of neurological surgery at the University of Miami. He visited Huang in Beijing in the summer of 2004 to sample and test the fluid being injected into foreign patients. The results were inconclusive, he says. Following this, he went a step further, and examined spinal cord injury patients pre- and post-treatment in China. The results, published in 2006 in the journal Neurorehabilitation and Neural Repair, make clear the difference between what the doctors see and what patients want to believe. Of the seven, six thought they recovered some limb movement, although in most cases the physicians measured very little difference.

A few had concrete gains: a 19-year-old had chronic, burning back pain that eased enough for the patient to stop taking painkillers. Another patient had fewer muscle spasms after the procedure and could angle his left hand a little more, although he phoned Guest six months later to say the surgery had not made any permanent difference. On the downside, there were also post-treatment complications: a 22-year-old contracted meningitis, pneumonia and gastrointestinal bleeding, which were managed with heavy medications, and another had a fever and confusion along with a drug rash. Guest is critical of the Chinese stem cell treatments: he believes some doctors are “motivated by profits” and “they place patients at risk for therapies which have minimal effect.”

Eight months after travelling to China, Haas was struggling with the symptoms of Machado-Joseph disease. He was having problems walking and was falling again. The family still had some money left over from their fundraisers, so they decided to make another trip to China, and took out a small loan. In March 2008, he and his wife went to China, this time to Qingdao in eastern China—the first hospital wouldn’t accept them since it was now prioritizing Chinese nationals over foreigners, explains Cherie. After four weeks of treatment, Haas had more energy and there were slight improvements in his balance and speech, he says. However, the gains lasted all of two months and today he’s just as bad as before the first trip. Nevertheless, despite the costs, and the dubious rates of success, the family would like to return again if they could afford it. “I would go tomorrow if we could,” Cherie says. “It gave people hope.”

By BRITTNI REINERTSEN

Bellevue Reporter Contributor Jan 12 2009, 5:30 PM · UPDATED

Pushing Boundaries, Washington’s only exercise-therapy center for people with paralysis, is gearing-up to introduce the state’s first robotic walking system, the Lokomat, early next year. The machine will be available for public use and may help those with paralysis regain strength and, in some cases, learn to walk again.
The Redmond-based facility held a luncheon at Bellevue’s Meydenbauer Center Nov. 6 to raise funds for the much-anticipated machine. Together with friends, family, and clients, Pushing Boundaries raised close to $90,000. The total cost for a Lokomat is $300,000.

“It (the luncheon) turned out really well, better than we could have hoped for,” said Shawna Hanson, the Event and PR Coordinator for Pushing Boundaries.
Featured at the event were client testimonies, a video describing the machine and its use, as well as a speech from co-founder Sharon Northrup.
“Pushing Boundaries started as a result of an injury Allan (her husband) sustained while we were both driving over I-90 seven years ago,” Northrup explained. The accident left Allan paralyzed from the mid-chest down.
They decided to move to San Diego where their daughter had discovered a new type of exercise therapy. Eventually, Sharon and Allan returned to Washington and founded a similar facility.
The mission of Pushing Boundaries is to improve the lives and health of people with paralysis through intensive and creative exercise-therapy programs, whether the condition is recent or long term.
The Lokomat is an example of the creative therapy that Pushing Boundaries emphasizes that could reverse “learned non-use” in affected muscle groups.
Here’s how it works. A person strapped into a harness is suspended over a treadmill, where they are attached to robotic sensors. They help move the legs in a natural walking pattern that is even, consistent and can be sustained over long periods of time.
According to the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, it is believed that this repetitive walking pattern helps the brain and spinal cord work together to re-route neural signals that may have been damaged due to illness or injury. The resulting “re-connection” helps the body regain mobility that has been lost due to injury, stroke or other neurological disorders such as Multiple Sclerosis.
The institute, which began clinical trials of this therapy in March 2002, claims other benefits that may include regained muscle strength and improved circulation. The weight-bearing nature of the machine may also help strengthen bones at risk for osteoporosis.
“Locomotion therapy is becoming something that’s more widely accepted,” said Hanson. “Doctors are learning that there are things that can build around the site of the injury to make a new connection.”
Jerry Daniels, an exercise therapist and certified personal trainer at Pushing Boundaries, explained how exercise therapy, like gait-training, helps to improve mobility. He compared the spine to a “super-highway.”
“Just because the highway’s been choked off, doesn’t mean we can’t go around the back roads. The body is always trying to fix itself; it wants to get better! If you help it by being active, it will work with you.”
Devin Givens, a young man and client at Pushing Boundaries, is an example of this concept.
In August 2007, Givens was in an all-terrain vehicle accident while vacationing with his family in Canada. Despite wearing all the required safety gear, the crash left him with three broken vertebrae. Luckily, Givens’ spinal cord was not severed and he maintained sensation throughout his body. However, he was left unable to walk.
“Virtually, he had a little bit of movement and a lot of spasms,” said his mother, Shannon Vernerey.
Both Givens and his mother were told that what mobility he could regain in the first 12 to 18 months following his accident would be it.
“I was told by the doctor in Canada that there was nothing we could do for him,” Vernerey said.
Then in December 2007, they came to Pushing Boundaries. There, Givens and his mother encountered an optimistic atmosphere where the vision is to inspire hope for those living with paralysis to do things they never thought possible.
At first, Givens could only stabilize himself while sitting on the edge of a mat.
“Today, he is standing at the parallel bars and taking some steps. He’s still regaining movement, he hasn’t plateaued at all,” said Vernerey.
She and Givens look forward to the boundaries they will continue to break through when the Lokomat arrives.
“As soon as I get on it, I’ll take off. Connections will be made,” said Givens.
Vernerey said she is totally convinced that the machine will help her son.
“With the success of this machine, how it helps the body reconnect and regenerate the nervous system. … I am totally 100 percent believing that he will walk again in his lifetime. There isn’t one doubt in my mind.”
William Holmes is another Pushing Boundaries client who is “psyched” for the Lokomat to arrive.
“You get to exercise. It’s going to be amazing! To have something that’s going to walk you. I mean, I haven’t walked in seven and a half months,” Holmes said.
He became paralyzed from the chest down as a result of a motorcycle accident along Seattle's Lake City Way last February.
Mike Buckel, one of Holmes’ trainers, is looking forward to the Lokomat as an alternative method of gait-training exercise. Clients currently practice walking on a light gait treadmill where they rely on trainers to set the pace and place their feet. The process is often slow and difficult.
“I think it’s going to be so much easier having a machine that walks somebody with the proper gait pattern rather than us doing it in cadence. Five minutes of doing that thrashes your body,” Buckel explained.
Another benefit of having a Lokomat at Pushing Boundaries is public access.
“We identified that this type of therapy was not available to anyone in the state of Washington,” said Tricia Lazzar, director of Pushing Boundaries.
“That’s the benefit of having it here; anybody who has the ability to go through gait-training would have the opportunity to use it,” she said.
Lazzar explained that there is a Lokomat in Portland at the Oregon Health Sciences University. However, it is used for stroke rehabilitation and not available for public use.
There will be no extra cost for client’s to use the Lokomat at Pushing Boundaries. An hourly fee of $80, some of which can be subsidized by the facility, includes the use of all equipment during one-on-one therapy sessions with a qualified trainer. Clients are required to come in for two-hour sessions at a minimum of two days a week.
“Bringing the Lokomat to Pushing Boundaries will impact literally hundreds of people in the state of Washington that are affected by paralysis each year,” Northrup explained at the luncheon.
The numbers alone reinforce her statement. According to Northrup, there are almost two spinal cord injuries a day in Washington state.
Northrup ended her speech by saying that whether "we want to believe it or not, tomorrow, the next day and every day there will be people who have things happen to them who will need us.
“We cannot change how many are injured,” she said, “but we can change how many we can help.”
For more information on the Lokomat or to make an appointment for a tour of the Pushing Boundaries facility, visit its Web site at www.pushing-boundaries.org or send an e-mail to info@pushing-boundaries.org.
Brittni Reinertsen is a student in the University of Washington Department of Communication News Laboratory.

BBC NEWS | Health

Thomas is recovering well say his mum and dad and Dr Jean-Pierre Lin
A five-year-old boy has become the smallest patient to undergo deep brain stimulation at a London hospital.

Thomas Melville-Ross has had electrodes inserted in his brain as a treatment for dystonia - a condition which causes involuntary muscles contractions.

At just 12.6kg (2 stones) - around the same as a toddler - his size meant the operation was only possible due to the development of a new small implant.

His twin sister, Alice, is also due to have the operation later this year.

Dystonia is a painful condition which causes affected parts of the body to develop abnormal movement or postures.

In severe cases it can be massively disabling.

This new device means we can try and help manage their conditions from a far earlier age

Dr Jean-Pierre Lin, Guy's and St Thomas's Hospital

Thomas and his sister, who live in Buckinghamshire, have the condition as a result of being born 16 weeks prematurely.

Deep brain stimulation is the only treatment in severe cases and is done through a surgically implanted medical device similar to a pacemaker.

The implant delivers controlled electrical pulses to affected areas of the brain to block out the signals which cause the disabling movements.

Previously implants have been too large to use in very young children.

But doctors believe that the years before the age of eleven are the most important in terms of neurological development.

A team at Guy's and St Thomas's and Kings College Hospitals said the new implant also has battery that can be recharged from outside the body, meaning it can last for almost a decade rather than only a couple of years.

Surgeons were keen to do the operation on Thomas as soon as possible as his dystonia makes it impossible for doctors to fit him with a cochlear implant he needs to cure his profound deafness.

Improvement

Dr Jean-Pierre Lin, consultant paediatric neurologist at Guy's and St Thomas' said although the implant takes three months to work there were already signs of improvement.

"Premature babies like Thomas are often affected by dystonia but because they develop smaller physically it has been impossible to give them early treatment.

"As a result they have gone on to suffer a poor quality of life and also a number of knock on problems such as spinal and hip injuries.

"This new device means we can try and help manage their conditions from a far earlier age."

Mr Richard Selway, the surgeon who did the operation on the 30 December, said dystonia could be "disastrously disabling"

"In addition to being smaller, the fact the new device is rechargeable is a massive benefit to the patient.

"This offers exciting possibilities and we anticipate being able to treat a lot more young children in the coming years."

James Melville-Ross, Thomas's father, said it was a big decision to put him forward for major surgery at such a young age but it was necessary.

"It is still early days, just over a week since the operation, but we are hopeful this will improve his long-term quality of life."

Philip Eckstein, chief executive of the Dystonia Society, said it was an "exciting development".

"The painful and uncontrollable muscle spasms of dystonia can be devastating to the child and the child's family.

"The fact that the operation can now be performed at a much earlier age means that there is less chance of pain and permanent muscloskeletal deformity and a much better chance that the child can have a good quality of life like their brothers or sisters."

Physiotherapy Neurological Conditions and Pediatric Disorders

13.12.2008 Author: Louis Soul Posted in Health & Fitness

by Louis Soul

Neurological conditions that are autoimmune diseases are difficult to treat. Myasthenia Gravis is one such illness. It causes muscular weakness because of a lack of communication between nerves and muscles. Like other neurological conditions, it can be very debilitating.

MS, one of the neurological conditions that affects the brain and spinal cord, can lead to a long, slow decline. Parkinson’s disease is another of the neurological conditions of the brain. This one can cause shaking and loss of coordination, and problems moving and walking. Physiotherapy offers some relief to these patients.
Many of the patients with neurological conditions cannot carry on daily functions such as caring for themselves and their homes. It is not uncommon for these people to be unable to work. They may even have trouble walking or getting up and down stairs at all.

Life after physiotherapy may be a more cautious affair than is was before. One may have to think before acting. No matter what one does, it is possible that a return to physiotherapy will take place. The best thing to do is to do your best to make all the right moves after physiotherapy.

Pediatric Disorders Help
Torticollis is a type of pediatric disorders of the neck. There is a problem with one of the muscles of the neck so that the one is not able to hold his head up straight. The head will be tilted to one side. This chin will jut out on the opposite side of the neck. Physiotherapy can stretch this muscle so that the child can hold his head more normally.

Spinal cord injuries as pediatric disorders are difficult to treat. Children often do not want to do the work that is required to stay ahead of the deterioration that can be caused by this condition. Physiotherapy personnel are challenged to keep the child’s spirits up as they teach them how to exercise with and without special equipment.

Traumatic injuries require a certain amount of psychological training, as the subject of the accident or other ordeal may bring on such distress that the child does not want to work. A good physiotherapist will be able to work with such a child. Traumatic injuries can also be severe enough that the physiotherapist plans a lengthy course of therapy to overcome them. Pediatric disorders like this require patience from everyone involved.


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Speech-language pathology is the study of disorders that affect a person’s speech, language, cognition, voice, swallowing (dysphagia) and the rehabilitative or corrective treatment of physical and/or cognitive deficits/disorders resulting in difficulty with communication and/or swallowing. Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) or Speech and Language Therapists (SLTs) address people’s speech production, vocal production, swallowing difficulties and language needs through speech therapy in a variety of different contexts including schools, hospitals, and through private practice.

Communication includes speech (articulation, intonation, rate, intensity), language (phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, pragmatics), both receptive and expressive language (including reading and writing), and non-verbal communication such as facial expression and gesture. Swallowing problems managed under speech therapy are problems in the oral, laryngeal, and/or pharyngeal stages of swallowing (not oesophageal).

Depending on the nature and severity of the disorder, common treatments may range from physical strengthening exercises, instructive or repetitive practice and drilling, to the use of audio-visual aids and introduction of strategies to facilitate functional communication. Speech therapy may also include sign language and the use of picture symbols (Diehl 2003).

The practice is called:

Speech-language pathology (SLP) in the United States and Canada
Speech and language therapy (SLT) in the United Kingdom, Ireland and South Africa
Speech pathology in Australia
Speech-language therapy in New Zealand
Other terms in use include speech therapy, logopaedics and phoniatrics.

Contents
1 Scope of practice
2 Professional roles
3 Education
4 Methods of assessment
5 Patients/clients
6 Place of work
7 Colleagues
8 See also
9 External links




Scope of practice
The practice of speech-language pathology involves:

Providing prevention, screening, consultation, assessment and diagnosis, treatment, intervention, management, counseling, and follow-up services for disorders of:
speech (i.e., phonation, articulation, fluency, resonance, and voice including aeromechanical components of respiration);
language (i.e., phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, and pragmatic/social aspects of communication) including comprehension and expression in oral, written, graphic, and manual modalities; language processing; preliteracy and language-based literacy skills, including phonological awareness;
swallowing or other upper aerodigestive functions such as infant feeding and aeromechanical events (evaluation of esophageal function is for the purpose of referral to medical professionals);
cognitive aspects of communication (e.g., attention, memory, problem solving, executive functions).
sensory awareness related to communication, swallowing, or other upper aerodigestive functions.
Establishing augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) techniques and strategies including developing, selecting, and prescribing of such systems and devices (e.g., speech generating devices.)
Providing services to individuals with hearing loss and their families/caregivers (e.g.,auditory training; speechreading; speech and language intervention secondary to hearing loss; visual inspection and listening checks of amplification devices for the purpose of troubleshooting, including verification of appropriate battery voltage).
Screening hearing of individuals who can participate in conventional pure-tone air conduction methods, as well as screening for middle ear pathology through screening tympanometry for the purpose of referral of individuals for further evaluation and management.
Using instrumentation (e.g., videofluoroscopy, EMG, nasendoscopy, stroboscopy, computer technology) to observe, collect data, and measure parameters of communication and swallowing, or other upper aerodigestive functions in accordance with the principles of evidence-based practice.
Selecting, fitting, and establishing effective use of prosthetic/adaptive devices for communication, swallowing, or other upper aerodigestive functions (e.g., tracheoesophageal prostheses, speaking valves, electrolarynges). This does not include sensory devices used by individuals with hearing loss or other auditory perceptual deficits.
Collaborating in the assessment of central auditory processing disorders and providing intervention where there is evidence of speech, language, and/or other cognitivecommunication disorders.
Educating and counseling individuals, families, co-workers, educators, and other persons in the community regarding acceptance, adaptation, and decision makes about communication, swallowing, or other upper aerodigestive concerns.
Advocating for individuals through community awareness, education, and training programs to promote and facilitate access to full participation in communication, including the elimination of societal barriers.
Collaborating with and providing referrals and information to audiologists, educators, and health professionals as individual needs dictate.
Addressing behaviors (e.g., perseverative or disruptive actions) and environments (e.g., seating, positioning for swallowing safety or attention, communication opportunities) that affect communication, swallowing, or other upper aerodigestive functions.
Providing services to modify or enhance communication performance (e.g., accent modification, transgendered voice, care and improvement of the professional voice, personal/ professional communication effectiveness).
Recognizing the need to provide and appropriately accommodate diagnostic and treatment services to individuals from diverse cultural backgrounds and adjust treatment and assessment services according.

Professional roles
Speech-language pathologists serve individuals, families, groups, and the general public through a broad range of professional activities. They:

Identify, define, and diagnose disorders of human communication and swallowing and assist in localization and diagnosis of diseases and conditions.
Provide direct services using a variety of service delivery models to treat and/or address communication, swallowing, or other upper aerodigestive concerns.
Conduct research related to communication sciences and disorders, swallowing, or other upper aerodigestive functions.
Educate, supervise, and mentor future speech-language pathologists.
Serve as case managers and service delivery coordinators.
Administer and manage clinical and academic programs.
Educate and provide in-service training to families, caregivers, and other professionals.
Participate in outcomes measurement activities and use data to guide clinical decision making and determine the effectiveness of services provided in accordance with the principles of evidence-based practice.
Train, supervise, and manage speech-language pathology assistants and other support personnel.
Promote healthy lifestyle practices for the prevention of communication, hearing, swallowing, or other upper aerodigestive disorders.

Education
In the UK( United Kingdom) , SLTs undertake a three to four year degree course devoted entirely to the study of clinical language sciences and communicative disorders. This qualifies them to work in any of the three main clinical areas. The course, which varies according to university, includes intensive study of core theoretical components underpinning competence to practice , Linguistics, Psychology and Medical science, in addition to the study of a range of communicative disorders in children and adults. Students are also expected to become familiar with a range of policies, processes and procedures relevant to working in different contexts, including health and education. The course is very demanding, and is assessed via coursework, exams and clinical placement. Some universities require students to assess and diagnose an ‘unseen client’ prior to completing their degree course; all require the completion of a pilot study related to the field of Speech and Language Therapy. Throughout the course, students undertake a variety of clinical placements in which their ability to practise is continually assessed. All courses require students to complete a certain amount of hours of clinical placement, although the structure of placement differs from course to course.

Upon qualifying SLT’s enter the profession as a newly-qualified practitioner. The recommended career course is that they then achieve a number of competencies, which qualify them to work autonomously. The Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists, the professional body representing Speech and Language Therapists in the UK, provides a framework of competencies which therapists are expected to achieve within 12–18 months of beginning clinical practice. Access to supervision during this period varies from trust to trust, and each individual therapist is expected to provide documentary evidence of competencies achieved to a senior colleague (usually a manager) who determines whether a therapist meets the required criteria for admission to the ‘full register’.

Speech and Language Therapists in the UK are required by law to register with the Health Professions Council, a regulatory body governing a range of health professions. The Health Professions Council has the power to discipline members who do not meet the rigorous standards for effective and safe clinical practice, and may ’strike off’ or deregister members who fail to maintain these standards.

In the United States, Speech Language Pathology practice is regulated by the laws of the individual states. However, by 2006, the minimal requirements to be a certified SLP member of the American Speech-Language Hearing Association were: a graduate degree in Speech-Language Pathology, which typically entails 2 years of post graduate work; a completed clinical fellowship year, which is generally employment for a year while supervised by a practicing SLP who is also ASHA certified; and passing the Praxis Series examination. The graduate degree work to acquire a Master’s in Speech-Language Pathology is rigorous and demanding, requiring many hours of supervised clinical practica, and intensive didactic coursework in medical sciences, phonetics, linguistics, phonology, scientific methodology, and other subjects.

Certification by ASHA is noted as carrying one’s “C”s. (Certificate of Clinical Competence) It is noted after an SLP’s name as: CCC-SLP.

In Australia, Speech Pathologists either undertake a four year undergraduate degree, or a two year Masters degree to qualify. These dual pathways are considered by Speech Pathology Australia to produce equally prepared graduates. To be eligible for optional membership of Speech Pathology Australia, students must study in one of the accredited courses outlined on their website. Speech Pathology degrees in Australia vary in curriculum, but always include streams teaching anatomy and physiology, professional practice, communication and swallowing disorders, and often some elementary psychology and audiology. Most include no or minimal elective subjects. All degrees include a heavy clinical component, and many also include a research component in final year. Once graduated, students become fully qualified Speech Pathologists and are eligible for any Level 1 position, without the need for an internship or general examination. Registration is only required in the state of Queensland, and membership of the professional organization is optional, although it is encouraged.


Methods of assessment
There are separate standardized assessment tools administered for infants, school-aged children, adolescents and adults. Assessments primarily examine the form, content, understanding and use of language, as well as articulation, and phonology. Oral motor and swallowing assessments often require specialized training which includes the use of bedside examination tools and endoscopic/modified barium radiology procedures.

Individuals may be referred to an SLP for the following: Traumatic brain injury; Stroke; Alzheimer’s disease and dementia; Cranial nerve damage; Progressive neurological conditions (Parkinson, ALS, etc); Developmental delay; Learning disability (speaking and listening); Autism Spectrum Disorders (including Asperger Syndrome); Genetic disorders that adversely affect speech, language and/or cognitive development; Injuries due to complications at birth; Feeding and swallowing concerns; Craniofacial anamolies that adversely affect speech, language and/or cognitive development; and Augmentative Alternative Communication needs.

There are myriad Speech-Language Assessment tools used for chidren and adults, depending on the area of need.


Patients/clients
Speech and language therapists work with:

Babies with feeding and swallowing difficulties
Children with mild, moderate or severe:
learning difficulties
physical disabilities, language delay
specific language impairment
specific difficulties in producing sounds (including vocalic r and lisps)
hearing impairment
cleft palate
stammering
autism/social interaction difficulties
dyslexia
voice disorders
Adults with eating and swallowing and/or communication problems following
stroke
head injury (Traumatic brain injury)
Parkinson’s disease
motor neuron disease
multiple sclerosis
Huntington’s disease
dementia
cancer of the head, neck and throat (including laryngectomy)
voice problems
mental health issues
learning difficulties, physical disabilities
stammering (dysfluency)
hearing impairment
transsexual women seeking voice therapy
In the United States, the cost of speech therapy for a child younger than three years old is likely covered by the state early intervention (zero to three) program.

In Britain, the majority of Speech and Language therapy is funded by the National Health Service (and increasingly, by partners in Education) meaning that initial assessment is available cost-free to all clients at the point of service, regardless of age or presenting problem. The large numbers of referrals contribute to high caseloads and long waiting lists, although this differs from area to area. To meet the needs of many of these clients, it has become necessary for many services to focus heavily on training and consultative models of service provision. The number of hours of direct therapy available to clients varies widely from trust to trust and most areas operate strict guidelines for prioritisation to meet the high clinical demand.


Place of work
Speech and language therapists work in community health centres, hospital wards and outpatient departments, mainstream and special schools, further education colleges, day centers and in their clients’ homes. Some now work in courtrooms, prisons and young offenders’ institutions.

Some speech and language therapists who work independently will see children and adults in their own homes, and may offer appointments on a Saturday.


Colleagues
SLTs/SLPs work closely with others involved with the client, for example difficulties with eating and drinking may also involve an occupational therapist. Speech and language therapists also work closely with parents and caregivers and other professionals, such as audiologists, teachers, nurses, dietitians, physiotherapists, and doctors.

An open day at a Liverpool centre will help us understand how people overcome brain injuries and neurological conditions to live full and rewarding lives. David Charters reports

ON A morning when the sky promises sleet, three women meet under comforting lights in the cafe of a building off the main street for a nice cuppa and a chat about all the usual things.

You know, Christmas shopping, silly celebrities on TV, the weather; yes, the eternal weather – and how one of them began suffering from serious epileptic seizures after her beautiful baby sister died and how the second was almost killed by a hit-and-run driver, who left her bleeding on the Tarmac.

The third just listens, occasionally squeezing the arm of one of the others, the way that women do when they are offering encouragement to a friend telling a story.

And “friend” is the right word here on Norton Street, just off Liverpool’s London Road, where the traffic of the day is passing in grey anonymity. This is the headquarters of Neurosupport, a charity established to provide non-clinical help to people with neurological conditions including the diseases known as Alzheimer’s, Huntingdon’s and Parkinson’s, strokes, migraine, epilepsy, brain tumours and brain injury, as well as anything affecting the nervous system.

There is still a taboo in some circles about mentioning that something has happened to the “brain”, as though its existence is unconnected to the rest of the person; so we use expressions like “a problem upstairs”, while nodding sagely, instead of addressing the facts.

But, on Tuesday, Neurosupport is holding an open day to enable the public to find out more about its work. Exhibits will include a short film, photographs, paintings and poems, all done by people associated with the centre, many of whom have neurological conditions.

And there, sitting in the comfortable lounge with their cups of tea, are Dorothy (Dot) McCarthy, 51, a clerical officer with a housing trust, who is married to Peter, a JCB driver, with whom she has a daughter, Louise, 29; Natalie Shaw, 26, a part-time assistant at Debenham’s store; and Maureen Kelly, 55, the centre’s manager and a mother of two.

The mood is convivial, but Dot is about to tell a harrowing story. Her language is vivid, but it needs to be if you are to understand just a little of what she has experienced and how, as a result of that, spells of day-dreaming grew into full epileptic fits (grand mal).

At the time, Dot was nine and living in council flats in Leasowe, Wirral. One day she was returning home from the local school. She squeezed through railings to take a short-cut home and saw blood on the concrete beneath the window of their flat. Dot’s little sister, Suzanne, two, had fallen from the window.

Her body had been taken back to the flat. “But my mum was coming down the stairs with what looked like a bundle of rags when I arrived. It was my sister,” recalls Dot.

Within seconds, a happy and loving family had been cast into the deepest grieving – the parents, Billy Lines, a building worker, and his wife, Betty, as well as Dot’s five other brothers and sisters. “I used to have little day-dreams, but they never put that down to anything at the time, until I had the full seizure when I was nine,” says Dot. “My behaviour changed, but in those days they didn’t associate behavioural patterns with epilepsy. I was just a naughty child.”

As a result of this, the authorities sent Dot to a boarding school in Somerset, and then another one in Wales.

She was very unhappy and badly treated at both. Dot says that it wasn’t until she was 13 that her parents learned the full extent of her epilepsy, though unsympathetic staff at the boarding schools had referred to her as being “zombie-like”.

As standards of treatment and diagnosis improved, Dot, who later passed GCSEs in sociology, psychology, English Literature and English Language, was treated with drugs to control her condition. But she developed TB and required drugs for that. The doctors decided that these should not be mixed with her epilepsy drugs, which were stopped altogether. For 24 years, the fits stopped.

“And then, for some unknown reason, I had five fits and had to be sent to hospital,” says Dot, who now lives in Moreton, Wirral. “They started happening again after that and I was put back on medication.”

As part of her treatment, Dot started coming to Nerosupport. At the centre, clients can attend courses appropriate to their own condition, particularly “confidence building”, which is crucially important to recovery. They are also linked to sympathetic employers. More than that, it is just a good place for people to meet and talk.

“I have had help in work regarding my epilepsy, basically showing them that because I have a condition, it doesn’t mean that I can’t do a good job,” Dot says.

She was referred to the centre by the Epilepsy Society. “The main thing for me has been understanding that I have a condition and not an illness,” she says. “When I was little, I was told that because I was ill, I had to go away. I was just a naughty girl, who was bad-tempered, but now I have been re-educated. I know that I am like everybody else.

“Suzanne’s death was so traumatic. We were all very affected by it. How else could you have been? T he people here listen to me and talk to me and they have explained what could have happened to me, to help me come to terms with it. It has been like learning all over again.”

The condition is under control again, though Dot still receives the auras, the sensations of deja vu and a sickly taste in her mouth, which can be the prelude to an attack.

She attended the centre twice a week, as did hit-and-run victim Natalie, who received multiple head and body injuries after enjoying a Mother’s Day celebration in the city centre in 2003. These injuries were so serious that there were fears she would die, but after specialist treatment she slowly recovered.

Before the accident, Natalie, from the Vauxhall neighbourhood of Liverpool, was an enthusiastic amateur song-and-dance performer, who had been studying for a career in business, administration and marketing.

She was referred to the centre two years ago. “All the staff here are great. I get on with them all,” she says. “The people at Debenhams have also been great. The confidence-building and just coming here has really helped me.”

Three women finish their tea. They have different needs and ambitions, but each has a life to enjoy. Soon they will meet again, as friends do.

Sleep disorders are common in U.S., and experts are concerned

Billie Jean Hemelstrand, 65, of Christmas Valley, settles in for the night last week at the High Desert Sleep Center in Bend. Hemelstrand underwent her second sleep study at the center to test the effectiveness of a continuous positive airway pressure machine to prevent her sleep apnea. Experts say millions of Americans are getting their sleep problems checked out, reducing the risk of serious health complications.

During a sleep study, doctors attach electrodes to the patient to track heart rate, breathing and brain waves. The results can be used to diagnose what might be preventing patients from getting a good night’s sleep.

Technicians at the High Desert Sleep Center in Bend fit an oxygen mask on Billie Jean Hemelstrand last week. The mask helps keep her airway open. Patients with untreated sleep apnea can wake up 200 times a night, leaving them far from rested the next morning.

Dr. Theresa Buckley, one of the doctors of the High Desert Sleep Center


Tips for a good night's sleep
Set a schedule: Go to bed at the same time each night and get up at the same time each morning. Sleeping in on weekends disrupts your sleep cycle and makes it much harder to get up on Monday morning.Exercise: Try to exercise 20 to 30 minutes a day. There’s conflicting evidence whether exercising later in the day interferes with sleep.Avoid caffeine, nicotine and alcohol: Caffeine, in coffee, sodas and some medications, is a stimulant that keeps people awake. Smokers tend to sleep very lightly and often wake up early due to nicotine withdrawal. Alcohol robs people of deep sleep.Relax before bed: A warm bath, reading or other relaxing routine can make it easier to get to sleep.Sleep until sunlight: If your schedule allows, wake up with the sun or use very bright lights in the morning. Sunlight helps the body’s internal clock reset itself.Don’t lie awake in bed: If you can’t get to sleep, get up and do something else until you feel tired. The anxiety of being unable to fall asleep can contribute to insomnia.

Control your room temperature: Extreme temperatures may disrupt sleep or prevent you from falling asleep.See your doctor if your sleeping problem continues: If you have trouble falling asleep, night after night, or if you always feel tired the next day, you may have a sleep disorder. Talk to your primary care physician about a referral.

Every morning, millions of Americans roll over to turn off the alarm and dig deep to find the motivation to drag themselves out of bed. Tired, sleepy, even downright exhausted, they plod their way through another workday, another round of shuttling kids to after-school activities, another evening of the myriad tasks that must be completed before bed. Then the few hours of the night that remain — the spare change left of the day’s dollar — they give to sleep.

Sleep experts warn that America has become a sleep-deprived society and is suffering significant health and economic consequences. “With Americans working such long hours — on top of their other responsibilities like childcare and household maintenance — something has to give. Unfortunately that something is usually nighttime sleep,” said Darrel Drobnich, acting CEO of the National Sleep Foundation. “People tend to give up sleep, when getting a good night’s sleep should be at the top of everyone’s list to ensure maximum daytime performance both at work and home.”

According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, the widespread practice of burning the candle at both ends in Western industrialized societies has created so much sleep deprivation that what really should be abnormal sleepiness has become the norm.

Now sleep specialists are making a push to educate Americans about how crucial it is to get sufficient sleep and how to identify bad habits or sleep disorders that are getting in the way. Your health and well-being, they say, depend on it.
“That time might be the most important of your entire day,” said Dr. David Dedrick, a sleep disorder specialist at the High Desert Sleep Center in Bend. “You may have done everything right, in terms of exercising and (eating a healthy diet), but if you didn’t get the right quantity and quality of sleep, you may have really missed the boat.”

Pillow time
Dedrick said most people need seven to eight hours of sleep a night. Yet, in a recent survey by the National Sleep Foundation, adults said they sleep on average only 6 hours and 40 minutes per night, about three hours less time than they spend working.

Nearly two-thirds of those forgoing sufficient sleep said they just accept their sleepiness and keep going, while another third rely on caffeinated beverages to get them through the day. More than half said they try to catch up on their sleep during the weekend.

But Dedrick said the notion that you can catch up on sleep is a fallacy. “Once the brain has gone through a night of insufficient amount of sleep, there is probably a measurable, albeit small, loss in neurological function,” he said. “It’s small, but over cumulative amounts of time, if you’re somebody that consistently does this, you’re doing damage to your brain.”

Studies document that insufficient sleep leads to worse productivity and more absences from work or school, a higher risk of work-related injuries, and a severe toll on well-being. A poor night’s sleep can negatively affect mood, attitude, energy, memory and overall outlook on life.

People suffering from sleep deprivation test worse on driving simulators than those who are intoxicated, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that 100,000 motor vehicle accidents and 1,500 deaths each year can be attributed to driver fatigue.

Shortchanging yourself on sleep has been linked to serious health consequences, including a higher risk for diabetes, heart disease and obesity.
Meanwhile, getting extra sleep seems to provide tangible benefits. Swiss researchers analyzed 20 years of health records and found that the number of heart attacks dropped on the Monday after daylight savings time ends. The researchers said the dip could be due to the extra hour of sleep. Mondays typically have higher rates of heart attacks, and many sleep experts believe that reflects changes in sleep schedules over the weekend. When people sleep in and stay up later on the weekend, the 6 a.m. alarm on Monday mornings might be particularly taxing for the body.

How sleep impacts the body is still poorly understood. Many sleep experts believe that sleep provides the opportunity for brain neurons used while we are awake to shut down and repair themselves. Without sleep, neurons may become so depleted of energy or so polluted with byproducts of normal cellular activities that they can’t function normally.

Dedrick likens the body to a skyscraper in which workers toil away during the day and a cleaning crew comes in during the night to vacuum, take out the trash and fix the broken equipment. If that nightly support staff goes on strike, soon the equipment breaks down and the trash piles up. “If you don’t give enough time for your night crew to come in and do their job, you’re not going to be able to work very well,” he said. “People often think of sleep as this passive process where your body is not doing anything. Actually, your body is incredibly active.”

The National Center on Sleep Disorders estimates that 50 million to 70 million Americans suffer from sleep problems. As a result, millions of people go through their day wondering why they can’t stay awake or go to bed wondering why they can’t fall asleep.

“People are notorious for underestimating how sleepy they are,” said Dr. David Kuhlmann, medical director of sleep medicine at Bothwell Regional Health Center in Sedalia, Mo., and a spokesman for the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. “People assume that their disrupted sleep and level of sleepiness when awake is normal for their age.”

Dedrick said that sleep patterns do change as people age. From ages 20 to 40, people tend to sleep pretty well in the absence of poor sleep habits or medical problems. From ages 40 to 60, sleep quality tends to decline, with less deep sleep and more awakenings during the night. “From age 60 and beyond, your sleep should be at baseline what it is, and it should be relatively good,” he said. “If it’s not, you can’t blame your age.”

Like father, like son
And it’s not just adults who aren’t getting enough sleep. A study published this week by researchers from the University of Montreal found that at least 30 percent of children between 6 months and 6 years of age have difficulty sleeping six consecutive hours. Those that got less sleep were more likely to be obese or hyperactive.

The researchers found that 25 percent of children who slept fewer than 10 hours were overweight, compared with 15 percent who slept for more than 10 hours, and 10 percent among those that slept at least 11 hours.

“When we sleep less, our stomach secretes more of the hormone that stimulates appetite,” said Dr. Jacques Montplaisir, a lead author of the study. “And we also produce less of the hormone whose function is to reduce the intake of food.”
And, Montplaisir said, unlike adults who just get sleepy, children get overly excited when they are tired. The study found that 22 percent of children who slept for less than 10 hours were hyperactive, double the rate of those who slept 10 to 11 hours per night.

Insufficient sleep also affected their performance on cognitive tasks. Some 41 percent of the children who didn’t get enough sleep scored poorly on a cognitive test, compared with 17 percent to 21 percent of children who slept 10 or 11 hours per night.

Many sleep experts believe that a certain percentage of children diagnosed with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder may simply be short on sleep. And when those children are medicated, it often further disrupts their sleep patterns.
Most teens aren’t getting anywhere near the eight to 10 hours of sleep recommended either. Their tendency to stay up late, get up early and try to make up the sleep on the weekends is a recipe for disaster, said Dr. Ruth Benca, co-director of the sleep research center at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.
“Kids who have an ongoing shift in their sleep patterns often have poor school performance and problems with depression and cognition,” she said. “Kids who go to bed earlier during the week feel better and perform better in everything they do.”
Benca said the body’s circadian rhythms, the cycles that govern sleeping and waking, start to change during puberty. Teens naturally become “night owls,” she said. But societal factors exacerbate the problem. Evening activities, as well as late-night Internet surfing, texting and TV time, often keep teens up even later. And with more activities outside of school, such as sports or clubs, many kids are getting up earlier as well.

“Some kids are getting up at 5 a.m. to fit these activities into their schedule,” Benca said. “Needless to say, they’re getting pretty sleep-deprived.”

Identifying problems
Dedrick said many sleep problem for adults and children can be linked primarily to bad habits. For example, many of his patients spend time checking their e-mail right before going to bed.

“What happens is you get on the computer and the bright light from the computer screen tricks your brain into making you think it’s daytime,” he said.
Other people turn to alcohol as a nightcap to help them sleep. That’s another bad idea, Dedrick said.

“The problem with any drug, alcohol included, is the withdrawal of the drug leads to an opposite effect,” he said. “Alcohol is a sedative and it may help you fall asleep, but when it wears off, it’s opposite sedation, it’s activation.”
As a result, people fall asleep fine, but at 2 a.m. are wide awake.
Dedrick said other strategies for getting a good night’s sleep involve getting plenty of exercise, which boosts blood flow and oxygen to the brain, and establishing a regular schedule for sleep.

“We have a very callous attitude toward sleep, that sleep is a waste of my time, that it cuts out of my productivity at work. All of that is horribly wrong,” Dedrick said. “We’re sort of shooting ourselves in the foot.” Doctors like Dedrick can also identify more serious medical conditions that could be interfering with sleep. One in seven Americans, when they fall asleep, have trouble keeping their airways open, shutting off their supply of oxygen. The condition, known as sleep apnea, forces the brain to wake up to re-establish airflow.

“If you have unstable airflow while you’re asleep, it becomes de facto almost impossible to get a good night’s sleep,” he said. “Because the brain, instead of totally checking out and resting, is having to wake up over and over and over again.”
The awakenings are so brief that most people are not aware of it, but they break up sleep quality.

“It’s not unusual for us to find that 200 to 300 times per night,” Dedrick said.
Doctors have come to realize that untreated sleep apnea can be lethal, often leading to heart failure and sudden death. A study published earlier this year suggested that people with severe, untreated sleep apnea have five times the risk of dying from a heart problem. And often, patients are unaware they are affected.
Marta Izo, a surgical floor nurse at St. Charles Bend who is in her 50s, said she never really felt she wasn’t getting a good night’s sleep, but went for a sleep study at the High Desert Sleep Center after her husband told her she was snoring more at night.

There, technicians wired her to track her heart rate, oxygen flow and brain waves during the night. “Evidently, I had very bad sleep apnea, my pressures were super duper high,” she said. “I never really felt like I was sleep deprived. I wasn’t falling asleep during the daytime. I wasn’t doing what typically you would think a patient would do that had severe sleep apnea.”

Izo was given a continuous positive airway pressure machine, which provides a flow of air that keeps the airway open. It took some time to get used to the machine and the noise it made. Izo had to work with technicians at the sleep center to find the right combination of machine, mask and fit. “I do think my quality of sleep is much better. I dream now, which I was never dreaming before,” she said. “I think probably mentally I’m a little bit sharper.”

As a nurse, Izo sees many patients that suffer from sleep apnea and are overweight or obese. But Izo said she’s run across just as many people with reasonable weight, just like herself, who have sleep apnea. And despite her medical training, she said she never realized just how dire the consequences of not treating sleep apnea could be. “My husband, he complained about the fact that I snored, and then he complained about the sound of the machine, I just told him what the doctor told me. ‘Would your husband rather be taking care of you after you have a stroke?’” she said. “That made me sit up and take notice. I don’t want him to have to take care of me after I have a stroke.”

It’s worth talking to your doctor if you suspect you might have a sleep problem, she said. Most health insurance plans cover the cost of such sleep studies, although most require a referral from a primary care physician. Home sleep testing is also available, but it generally records less information and focuses solely on sleep apnea. While public awareness of sleep apnea is increasing — Dedrick said referrals spiked after former professional football player Reggie White died of sleep apnea several years ago — public health experts say most people still aren’t getting potential sleep problems checked out.

Two years ago, the Institute of Medicine issued a report calling for more attention
and research into sleep disorders. The group said the nation has neither the understanding nor the capacity to fully treat the 50 million to 70 million Americans with sleep disorders. “What your grandma told you about getting a good night’s sleep, what seems to be good common sense, is now panning out in the scientific data to be far more important than we’ve ever been aware of,” Dedrick said. “It’s kind of an amazing health revolution that’s going on right now.”

A Eugene-based scientist is testing a robotic device intended to help people improve their handwriting

Sue Palsbo watches 11-year-old Mizuel Alfaro as he tries out a device that her company has assembled to help people with their handwriting.

Rehabilitation scientist Sue Palsbo, of Eugene, says the new generation of interactive video games, such as Nintendo’s Wii, can be a lot more than just fun and games.
The gaming systems can be powerful, yet affordable, tools to improve the lives of people with disabilities and people who are recovering from injuries.
“You go to hospitals now and therapists are talking about ‘Wii-habilitation,’ ” Palsbo says. “The games engage adults and kids to move their bodies in ways that you’re trying to achieve with exercises, but people get bored with exercises.”
So about five years ago, when Palsbo spotted a device for telesurgery at a medical conference, she thought it could be adapted to help people improve, or regain, their ability to write.
Palsbo began to work on her idea and, later, the Canadian software engineer who had programmed the telesurgery device told her about the Novint Falcon, an inexpensive, off-the-shelf gaming accessory that could be modified for her purposes.
That put Palsbo, a research professor at George Mason University in Fairfax, Va., on the path to create My Scrivener, a system to provide repetitive motion training for people who have trouble with fine-motor control of their hands.
Typically, such practice is provided by a therapist working hand-over-hand with a student or patient, which is labor intensive, costly and inexact.
Palsbo hopes My Scrivener will be a less expensive and more efficient way to help a wide range of people, from children with disabilities trying to print more legibly, to Iraq war veterans relearning how to write after suffering from traumatic brain injuries from roadside bombs.
Palsbo’s initial focus is to develop an instrument that therapists can use with children in the classroom. She’s also working with a group from George Mason University, including Lynn Gerber, director of the university’s Center for Study of Chronic Illness and Disability, to explore how the technology might be able to help wounded Iraq war veterans.
“It does have good application for the school environment,” Gerber said. “But if you look at it more broadly, as I did, it’s capable of doing many more things.”
In one fell swoop, she said, the device could be used as a therapeutical tool, it could provide a therapist or clinician with objective measures of a patient’s progress, and it has potential as a diagnostic tool to identify abnormalities in brain function.
Palsbo’s path to develop My Scrivener also led her and her family to Eugene from Virginia two years ago. Palsbo said she had long wanted to live in the Pacific Northwest, and her family has been happy with Eugene’s cultural opportunities and easy access to the ocean and the mountains. They plan to stay in the area and grow their business, Obslap Research, here.
(Palsbo’s first choice for a company name was taken, so she quickly had to come up with an alternative. Obslap is Palsbo in reverse.)
Ultimately, “our hope is we’ll find an investor, and we’ll build the company here, and we’ll be a going concern,” she said.
Last week, Sue, the company’s CEO, and her husband Art, its CFO, showed off My Scrivener to the Robotics Club at Kennedy Middle School.
Many of the club’s 20 members took turns typing in their names, then grasping the Bic pen inserted in the device as it marched across the page, leaving each name printed neatly in blue ink.
“Even robots have better handwriting than I do,” cracked one of the middle schoolers.
It has taken two years for Palsbo, with $575,000 in funding from two Small Business Innovation Research grants from the U.S. Department of Education, to reach this point. And there’s still a long way to go before the invention will be ready to market next year.
“As a research scientist, I’m totally committed to evidence-­based research,” Palsbo said. “I do not want to put something out that looks really cool and really spiffy, but doesn’t actually improve fine-motor skills.”
Palsbo also recognizes therapists’ need for the system to include objective measures of legibility.
To create those, Palsbo plans to study the variability in the handwriting of typically developing children with good penmanship. Palsbo is recruiting 18 such children from the local area — three each from kindergarten to grade 5 — to spend about 20 minutes writing with My Scrivener during the winter holiday break. Each of those students will receive a $20 gift certificate from Smith Family Bookstore, Palsbo said. Families with children who are interested in participating may contact Palsbo at 505-7591.
Then, in February or March, Palsbo will begin research trials with 60 local children in special education classes, whose individualized education plans include a goal to improve handwriting. The kids will use My Scrivener for about 30 minutes a day for three weeks, she said.
Palsbo also will be seeking FDA approval of My Scrivener as a medical device.
“If scientific study can prove it’s safe and effective, that the therapists like it and can use it, then at that point we’d seek investors,” she said.
Palsbo has collaborated with numerous partners to create My Scrivener.
George Mason University filed the patent application and will license the intellectual property back to Obslap Research exclusively, Palsbo said.
Palsbo contracted with Oregon State University’s Mechanical, Industrial, & Manufacturing Engineering department to create the attachment to the Novint gaming accessory. The system’s software was developed under contract by the Eugene firm Lunar Logic.

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Rehabilitation scientist Sue Palsbo, of Eugene, says the new generation of interactive video games, such as Nintendo’s Wii, can be a lot more than just fun and games. The gaming systems can be powerful, yet affordable, tools to improve the lives of people with disabilities and people who are recovering from injuries. “You go to hospitals now and therapists are talking about ‘Wii-habilitation,’ ” Palsbo says. “The games engage adults and kids to move their bodies in ways that you’re trying to achieve with exercises, but people get bored with exercises.” So about five years ago, when Palsbo spotted a device …

For patients on Unit 58 at the Foothills Medical Centre, rehab can be fun and games.

The unit, home of the centre's Tertiary Neuro Rehab Program, utilizes a Nintendo Wii video game system as part of its rehabilitation efforts for patients with brain and spinal cord injuries, those who have suffered strokes and others with different neurological diagnoses.

Andy Ganden, a recreational therapist on the unit, says the Wii is just one of many tools used for rehab but adds it's a valuable one.


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Font:****"There's therapeutic value to it," Ganden says of the innovative gaming system that responds to body movement, as opposed to other gaming systems that use a standard controller.

"We use it to reintroduce patients to previously-learned skills. It can help with eye-hand co-ordination, memory and retention. Plus, it has a nice competitive flavour to it but that's not the focus," adds Ganden.

Patients can play virtually any sport from tennis to bowling to boxing, as well as more rehab-focused games that sharpen cognitive skills, according to Kim Francis, a recreational therapist and clinical leader on the unit.

"A lot of patients are in wheelchairs and many have limited use of their hands and arms," she says.

"They can't play traditional video games because of the fine motor skills and dexterity needed," she says, twiddling her thumbs mimicking playing a conventional video game.

"We can adapt the Wii to meet different needs."

Take Jack Veldhuyzen, for instance. He was an avid golfer before he came to Unit 58 with Guillain-Barre syndrome, a serious disorder that occurs when the body's immune system mistakenly attacks part of the nervous system. It leads to nerve inflammation that causes muscle weakness, which continues to get worse.

The syndrome forced Veldhuyzen off the golf course but he was able to play many rounds of Wii golf with Ganden during his rehabilitation.

"It helped with balance, motor skills and with confidence," says Veldhuyzen, who recently played his first 12 holes of real golf since being released from the hospital.

"It lets you get back into doing things. It just helps prepare you to get back into normal life again," said Veldhuyzen.

That's what Francis and Ganden hoped would happen.

"It gives our patients a little bit of confidence in terms of if they golfed before, they can do a bit of golfing here, although it's a different kind of golf," Francis said.

"It's a game situation where they can have a positive experience without really putting themselves on a golf course where they might fail."

Francis says the mental boost that the gaming system provides is as important as the physical benefits. At a basic level, the video game gives patients an enjoyable thing to do during their lengthy hospital stay.

"The tertiary patients are here for a long time," says Francis. "It's not just a six-day stay. Institutionalization does happen. With stuff like the Wii, we can help temper it a little."

"As well," adds Ganden, "we can play games where we have teams and the patients learn how to work together and build social skills. It's like a virtual experience. It's good preparation for the real deal."

As valuable as the Wii has been for the patients, Francis says it's also been a positive experience for the Unit 58 staff.

"From a team-building perspective, it's been great," she says.

"We'll come in here during our lunch and compete against each other. We just have fun and we laugh. It's a byproduct I never would have thought of."

Chris Simnett works for the Calgary Health Region

Therapists use video games to motivate patients

While gamers spend countless hours in front of television screens and battle thumb fatigue on a daily basis, they may meet their match if they do battle with some local therapy patients.

The Thibodaux Regional Medical Center’s Outpatient Rehabilitation program has found a new, fun way to carry out its mission and in the strangest of ways … video games.

The program is one of a kind in the bayou region, using the Nintendo Wii gaming system to aid in outpatient physical rehabilitation.

“We’ve used the Nintendo Wii for the last five months with appropriate patients in our clinic,” said Jason Ledet, program director of both in- and outpatient programs for Thibodaux Regional Medical Center.

He said appropriate patients fall under several categories including patients with balance issues, strokes and brain injuries.

“The patient has to be capable of some physical activity before being allowed the use of the treatment,” Ledet said.

Rehab officials say they have received positive feedback from the gaming system’s use.

“Most of our patients really enjoy it; the kids love it,” physical therapist Jennifer Matherne said. “Some of our older patients enjoy it too; those with head injuries or strokes – it’s a challenge for them but it also let’s them play a little and help them to remember they can still have fun.”

Ledet said the particular game used is dependent upon the patient and their needs.

“We’ve used tennis, golf, bowling and especially the Wii fitness game which we use to improve balance and weight shifts,” he said.

The use of the system has been a motivating factor in the clinic and all of the games used are designed to help the patients with visual goals.

“It also challenges our patients on a competitive basis; we have patients that love to compete against each other,” Ledet said.

He said he recalls walking into a therapy session and witnessing a contest between a young and much-older patient.

“It was great to see the generation gap bridged and to see two completely different age groups combining, connecting and working together towards the same goals,” Ledet said. “You do see that very often in this line of work.”

While the Nintendo Wii has only been on the market for a few years, medical experts have been unable to conduct long-term studies on the effectiveness of the system, but local therapists say they can see the benefit of the unorthodox training.

“I believe it does work, in conjunction of course with other, more traditional therapeutic techniques,” Matherne said. The gaming treatment works especially well for “neurological patients who have trouble with balance, basic coordination, hand-eye coordination, lower extremity coordination and endurance. We also use the games to assess the patient’s ability to follow a task from start to finish.”

She said the new system allows for a self-motivating rehab session.

“Patients have to stand for an entire game of bowling, but the fact that there is some fun involved helps motivate the patient to follow through,” Matherne said. “We always try to make therapy sessions fun and challenging. The use of the Wii has made this easier for us because it really helps when the patient is looking forward to their session.”

Thibodaux Regional Medical Center isn’t the only facility that has welcomed the use of the trend-setting technology.

The Terrebonne Parish Library System offers exercise sessions twice a month for senior citizens using the Nintendo Wii. Classes are scheduled for 2 to 3:30 p.m. the second Monday in the large meeting room of the Terrebonne Parish Main Library, 151 Library Drive, Houma.

“It’s a chance for senior citizens to meet new people, socialize and have a good time while they exercise,” said Sarah Stewart, circulation clerk and Nintendo Wii presenter. “We also have a golf program if we have any retired golfers out there who would like to set up a session with the library.”

Karen Brunet from the East Houma Branch library said the gaming system can be requested for any Terrebonne Parish Branch library if enough interest is expressed in such a program.

“It’s a new element in the therapeutic world, and we will continue to use it as long as we have patients that are appropriate for its use,” Ledet said. “Our mission is to improve quality of life and maximize a person’s ability to perform daily tasks. We assist patients in developing new skills, relearning lost skills and making adjustments in their everyday lives.”

For information on Thibodaux Regional’s Rehabilitation Services/Programs, call 493-4435 or 493-4782 or visit www.thibodaux.com/rehabilitation.html. A physician’s prescription is needed for outpatient services.

For information on the senior-citizen exercise program at the Terrebonne Parish Main Library, call 876-5861. Registration is not required and the program is free and open to the public.