Orly's Chance to Walk
Donation protected
We are fundraising for our 6 year old daughter Orly who has Cerebral Palsy (CP). Orly needs an operation called Selective Dorsal Rhizotomy (SDR) which we hope will give her a chance to walk. This Operation is being carried out in the NHS (at Great Ormond Street), by an NHS surgeon, but will not be funded by the NHS.
Orly is currently a wheelchair user due to her CP and suffers from weak trunk muscles and extreme stiffness in her legs. This means that she cannot stand up unaided, and cannot walk. The SDR operation will involve cutting some of the nerves in Orly's spinal cord which are responsible for the very stiff leg muscles whilst leaving enough intact so that her legs do not become completely paralysed. Orly will be in hospital for 3 weeks following surgery and after the first few days of recovery she will start a programme of intense daily physiotherapy. This will mark the start of a gruelling year of daily physiotherapy which is essential for a positive outcome. Immediately after the surgery her legs will become jelly like, the intense physiotherapy is to build up the muscle function again to "normal", and give her a chance to walk. The operation has had amazing results for some children, literally being the difference between a lifetime in a wheelchair and the ability to walk. We are, of course, hoping for this too, but at the very least to achieve some basic abilities such as being able to "transfer" from her wheelchair to a toilet or other chair/bed - this in itself would be life changeing for Orly. In addition, SDR will help to prevent the natural progression of CP with worsening spasticity, the need for painful surgery on her joints and tendons, and early arthritis.
Despite the fact that Orly's operation will be carried out in an NHS Hospital (Great Ormond Street), by an NHS surgeon it will not be funded by the Government. We are fundraising for Orly because we have to pay for the operation itself plus a year of private physiotherapy ourselves. Orly will need professional physiotherapy sessions at least 4-5 x a week to make the operation a success. At the moment we are only receiving 1 hour of physio every other week, only during Term time, from the NHS.
Please help us to give our adorable little girl the best possible chance in life that we can.
Thank you, Gill, Amir and family.
Orly is currently a wheelchair user due to her CP and suffers from weak trunk muscles and extreme stiffness in her legs. This means that she cannot stand up unaided, and cannot walk. The SDR operation will involve cutting some of the nerves in Orly's spinal cord which are responsible for the very stiff leg muscles whilst leaving enough intact so that her legs do not become completely paralysed. Orly will be in hospital for 3 weeks following surgery and after the first few days of recovery she will start a programme of intense daily physiotherapy. This will mark the start of a gruelling year of daily physiotherapy which is essential for a positive outcome. Immediately after the surgery her legs will become jelly like, the intense physiotherapy is to build up the muscle function again to "normal", and give her a chance to walk. The operation has had amazing results for some children, literally being the difference between a lifetime in a wheelchair and the ability to walk. We are, of course, hoping for this too, but at the very least to achieve some basic abilities such as being able to "transfer" from her wheelchair to a toilet or other chair/bed - this in itself would be life changeing for Orly. In addition, SDR will help to prevent the natural progression of CP with worsening spasticity, the need for painful surgery on her joints and tendons, and early arthritis.
Despite the fact that Orly's operation will be carried out in an NHS Hospital (Great Ormond Street), by an NHS surgeon it will not be funded by the Government. We are fundraising for Orly because we have to pay for the operation itself plus a year of private physiotherapy ourselves. Orly will need professional physiotherapy sessions at least 4-5 x a week to make the operation a success. At the moment we are only receiving 1 hour of physio every other week, only during Term time, from the NHS.
Please help us to give our adorable little girl the best possible chance in life that we can.
Thank you, Gill, Amir and family.
Organizer
Gill Wray
Organizer