Category Archives: Cerebral Palsy

A family from Garndiffaith in Torfaen are appealing for help to raise enough money to fund an operation for their little boy. Lincoln Hope is five and has Cerebral Palsy. His particular condition might be helped with surgery, but isn't currently available in the UK. So his family are trying to raise enough money for an operation in the USA known as Selective Dorsal Rhizotomy (SDR). As many children with Cerebral Palsy get older, the effects on the body are quite severe. As the bones grow everything tightens up and they start to get deformities in their bones and joints so the operation is really more for going forward for the future really so he doesn't end up in a wheelchair or severe mobility issues as he's getting older." Jess Hope, Lincoln's mum On September 9 a fundraising night of comedy will be held at St David's Hall with comedians Frankie Boyle and Francesca Martinez. All proceeds will go towards the Lincoln's Legs appeal. Last year the Welsh Government did fund 14 patients to receive that specialist SDR surgery - and are currently evaluating the programme, which they are running alongside the NHS in England. See the original post here: … Continue reading →

Accra, Aug. 12, GNA -Mrs Ellen Affam-Dadzie, a mother of a seven-year old girl with cerebral palsy,has established an Inclusive Educational Centre to cater for children withspecial needs and offer the parents the opportunity to work and earn an income. The Centre; With GodCerebral Palsy Ghana, also offers physiotherapy services and provides qualitycare for children with cerebral palsy for free. Mrs Affam-Dadzie, inan interview with the media, said she knew how stressful and frustrating it wasto have a child with the condition and decided to offer support to enablemothers of such children to earn an income. I do not believe thatany family or person should become poor simply because they had a child withcerebral palsy. The mothers inability to work, among other factors, is whatcauses many families to kill these children or even wish their children dead,she said. Mrs Affam-Dadzie saidsince government was not doing much to support families of such children, shedecided to start the Centre as her contribution towards reducing their burden. She said the Centrealso gave the children with special needs an opportunity to mingle with otherchildren, adding; We are practicing inclusion. Mrs Affam-Dadziecalled on the Government to ensure that the inclusive education policy embracedmajority of children … Continue reading →

Despite having cerebral palsy, Dwayne Boyd decided he wanted to start going to the gym for the first time at the age of 46 and began working out at Planet Fitness in Leominster. SENTINEL & ENTERPRISE/JOHN LOVE LEOMINSTER -- One of the first things you notice about Dwayne Boyd is his handshake: a bone-cracking grip not unlike the animated hand of a stone statue. Another thing you will notice are the crutches those vice-like hands are clasped to. "What people don't know is that I'm actually quadriplegic. My arms aren't affected as badly, but they are," he said. Of Leominster's roughly 40,000 residents, Boyd has one of the best excuses not to go to the gym. Diagnosed with cerebral palsy when he was just 6 months old, Boyd relies on his crutches to get around and also experiences limited mobility in his arms. He decided to join Leominster's Planet Fitness in 2015, at the age of 44. Dwayne Boyd began going to the gym for the first time at the age of 44. Despite having cerebral palsy, Boyd is a regular at Planet Fitness in Leominster. SENTINEL & ENTERPRISE PHOTO/JOHN LOVE Although he had lifted weights in high school and … Continue reading →

Should he win the USPGA Championship at the North Carolina course, the 24-year-old will become the youngest man in history to complete the career grand slam. More than 2,000 miles north, just across the Canadian border, fewer TV cameras and spectators are at the Country Hills Golf Club, Calgary -- but PGA Tour history has already been made nonetheless. When Kyle Miller took to the first tee of the ATB Financial Classic on Thursday, he became the first person diagnosed with cerebral palsy to play in a PGA Tour-sanctioned event. Thanks to a sponsors' exemption, which has been earned through years of hard work, charity fundraising and sheer determination, Miller has realized a lifelong dream -- and one that he was told not to reach for. "It's amazing," a delighted Miller told CNN. "You know when you see your name on the PGA Tour app or the PGA Tour website and you're reading the storylines ... you realize your dreams are coming true." "And how many times I've read through those articles or looked at those tee times and seen guys that I knew. "I've been able to teach and inspire countless people with disabilities that achieving your dream is … Continue reading →

Community project Bobath Scotland Cerebral Palsy Centre in Glasgow has been awarded a 11,770 grant from the Scottish Children's Lottery. Bobath Scotland offers advice, help and support to children and adults living with cerebral palsy, and their families. Specialist therapy focuses on reducing pain, developing communication and mobility so children and adults with cerebral palsy can make the most of their own abilities and everyday life. Video Unavailable Click to playTap to play Play now Parents, siblings, teachers, local therapists and others learn how best to support and include each person. Bobath Scotland supports anyone with a diagnosis of CP, regardless of their age or location, and endeavours to reach as many people as possible at their specialist centre in Glasgow, online, and in their own communities. Stephanie Fraser , CEO of Bobath Scotland Cerebral Palsy Centre, said: Bobath Scotland is committed to helping everyone with cerebral palsy in Scotland live their lives to the full. "This wonderful donation from The Scottish Childrens Lottery will enable young people with CP to take advantage of opportunities and the desire for a fulfilled, independent, adult life that their peers take for granted. Thank you. Your support changes lives. "Chance to Connect supports … Continue reading →

New York CitysHospital for Special Surgery (HSS)is offering a trip to Long Island for young patients with disabilities including cerebral palsy (CP) to try adaptive surfing, a practice gaining attention for its therapeutic benefits. The trip isorganized by the Adaptive Sports Academy atHSS and includes people with CP, patients who have had amputations, and others with physical challenges. Activities like adaptive surfing have been shown to help pediatric patients build self-confidence and independence, and increase physical fitness and mobility. The Adaptive Sports Academy gives our patients a chance to develop new skills and interests, and it promotes mobility and activity. It also reinforces therapy goals by engaging participants in a new activity and requiring them to use their bodies in a new way, Lisa Ipp, chief of pediatric medicine atHSS, said in apress release. There is also an emotional component. Patients are so excited about what they can achieve, and parents are so thrilled to watch them. The outings have also cultivated connections between families who stay in contact long after the event ends, Ipp added. The first trip is scheduled for Monday, Aug. 14, from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Long Beach, Long Island. Trained volunteers from Skudin … Continue reading →

A Calgary man is becomingthe first golfer with cerebral palsy to compete at a PGA Tour-sanctioned event, theATB Financial Classic in his home city. "I have a pretty bad left side in a sense, mobility range is limited with my hand and leg," Kyle Miller told The Homestretch this week. "I just have worked through the battle and keep playing golf and caddying. It's part of the program." The 26-year-old, who is also a golf coach, says it was the support and guidance of one of his own coaches that gave him a foundation of confidence. "I was fortunate enough to have a coach Marty Desmaraiswhen I was younghelp me along the way to start learning the game at a pretty young age and I just stuck with it," he said. "Marty just gave me the belief and hope that I could do it. Ultimately, I think that's the number one thing he has given. He is probably the first person to ever believe in me in that sense." Miller says he's always been determined to work past his medical condition. "I have always wanted to earn things as straight up as it was going to get," he explained. "I … Continue reading →

Kyle Miller picked up the phone in his office at GolfTEC Calgary Midnapore a few weeks ago and called Colin Lavender, tournament director of the Mackenzie Tour-PGA Tour Canadas ATB Financial Classic. Miller had already written a letter to Lavender requesting a sponsors exemption into the tournament. Having been rejected 14 previous times for spots into other eventsand told all his life as someone with cerebral palsy that he couldnt achieve thingsMiller figured a call would go a long way to pitch his story. It did. Three weeks later, on the same day he had turned professional in 2013, Miller found out he had been given a spot in the field. On Thursday, at 2:30 p.m., the 26-year-old will tee it up at Country Hills Country Club in his hometown of Calgary, becoming the first golfer with cerebral palsy to tee it up in a PGA Tour-sanctioned event. In that conversation, I pled my case for an hour and a half, Miller said in a phone interview on Wednesday. And I think that time, rather than trying to get a Yes, I just made it clear that I wanted to know why hed say No in this point in my … Continue reading →

Barry Baker, the man chargedwith sucker punching a disabled manoutside a local 7-Eleven, claims that he was recently attacked by a corrections officer at the Chester County Prison, according to a letter obtained by The Daily Local News. The incident, which occurred May 10 in West Chester, provoked viral outrage after the Chester County District Attorney's Office released surveillance video of it, calling on the public to help locate the "bully" who mocked a 22-year-old man with cerebral palsy. Authorities said Baker, a resident of Georgetown, Delaware, had twice mocked the way the man walked before punching him in the face in the parking lot of the convenience store. Baker fled the scene, failed to turn himself inafter he was briefly in police custody and was eventually captured June 5 following a "two-week manhunt" by the U.S. Marshals and Chester County Sheriffs, according to authorities. In a letter dated Aug. 2, Baker, identifying himself as "the person whom you guys love writing about," told a reporter at The Daily Local that he was "roughed up" by an officer in the protective custody block where he has been held since his arrest. Baker reportedly claimed the assault took place July 30 … Continue reading →

A Canadian study identified a genetic link that may cause hemiplegic cerebral palsy (CP) in utero while the fetus is developing. The study was a collaborative effort between many research scientists and clinicians in Ontario, Canada, and it was funded by the CP-NET (Childhood Cerebral Palsy Integrated Neuroscience Discovery Network) Integrated Discovery Program of the Ontario Brain Institute. Hemiplegic CP affects only one side of the body, and the condition is estimated to affect approximately 1 in 1,300 live births. People generally think cerebral palsyis caused by physical factors such as birth asphyxia, stroke, or infection of the developing fetal brain. Now, this new research suggests that genetics may also play a role in the cause of hemiplegic CP. The study, De novo and rare inherited copy-number variations in the hemiplegic form of cerebral palsy, wasrecently published in the journalGenetics in Medicine. Researchers analyzed DNA from nearly 100 children with hemiplegic CP and their biological parents, and compared itto DNA from normal population controls. The team identified specific genetic alterations called copy number variants (CNVs) in several genes important for brain development and function. Some of these CNVs occur randomly while other CNVs can be inherited although rarely from the … Continue reading →