Surgery helps spastic kid walk after 12 years

KOLKATA: Amrita Ghosh, now 12, was born spastic. Cerebral palsy had affected her limbs. She could not sit on her own, leave alone standing on her feet. Over last 11 years, her parents ran from one hospital to other in search of treatment. But every time they returned empty-handed. From intensive physiotherapy to high-dose oral antispasmodic medication and botox therapy, nothing brought any ray of hope for the little girl. Finally, an Intrathecal Baclofen (ITB) therapy at the Apollo Gleneagles Hospitals recently worked wonders for her. She can now walk with the help of a walker, a dream even a few months back.

"I had done rounds of hospitals, including Ninhams in Bangalore to CMC Vellore and few other hospitals in Kolkata, for my daughter but to no avail," Amrita's father Gouridas Ghosh told TOI from Bankura. Then came the medical miracle for treating spasticity - ITB therapy. On being informed that the facility was available at Apollo Gleneagles Hospitals, the civil engineer with agri-irrigation department took her daughter there on January 27 and the girl underwent the therapy under Dr Anirban Deep Banerjee.

'This surgical success paves the way for a new hope for thousands of spastic children suffering from debilitating spastic paralysis," said the consultant neurosurgeon.

ITB Therapy is a procedure using a programmable, battery-powered medical device that stores and delivers a prescription medication to treat severe spasticity caused by cerebral palsy. The device is surgically implanted in the abdomen and a thin, flexible silicone tube called a catheter is inserted near the spine and connected to the pump. Anti-spastic medication is delivered through the catheter directly to the intrathecal area.

There has been substantial improvement in Amrita post the surgical procedure in her mobility. She is back to her Bankura home and is expected to improve further with time. This has been touted as the first ITB therapy conducted in eastern India.

"There is visible improvement in my daughter's condition. She is a very sharp girl but we had to put her in a special school because of her condition. We are hopeful that she will improve further," said Ghosh.

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Surgery helps spastic kid walk after 12 years