Sophie's Journey To Walk

Angelique Turner is organizing this fundraiser.

Donation protected

Sophie's BackStory

*If you would like to continue to donate that is fine I'm going to keep the GoFundMe open. This will not be the only trip that we do we will have to go for follow-ups and 6-month checkups.* The goal essentially was just for our next trip for her surgery but we will have to be down there post-op. Thank you for your time & support. All money goes straight to her medical account which is legally and essentially binded by a lawyer/bank to only be used for her medical only. All money taken out has to have proof of where monies were used.*

(Please note that the cost of the trip has changed after speaking with the housing and medical team since the last time we were in Florida has changed. This is due to the pandemic and inflation rates, so I had to raise the goal unfortunately. Thank you for all your support.)

Meet Sophie! She is an 8-year-old little girl born with two rare birth defects among a long list of medical issues. Sophie has two rare bone deformities known as Bilateral Proximal Femoral Focal Deficiency (1 in 600,000 people) and Fibular Hemimelia (1 in 40,000). She also suffers from anxiety, Autism, OCD, ADHD, and Hip Dysplasia. Sophie was born without hip sockets and a femoral head on each side of her pelvis, her femur bones are not the correct size which causes her quite a few different health issues and difficulty walking with pain. Introduction Sophie is missing part of her ankle and knees also.

She currently walks with a walker but has to take multiple breaks to get where she needs to go. These conditions will affect Sophie for the rest of her life there is no cure. She still depends on me for her daily needs and my help throughout the day. These funds are to help her on her journey to a happy and healthy life to provide medical care from her orthopedic surgeon in Florida.

Sophie has had multiple surgeries to try and help her walk. In 2016 she had a failed tension release procedure to try and help bring her legs down from the position that they are still currently in. Another of them was done by Dr. Dror Paley called SuperHip Surgery in April 2019, which did help her form somewhat of a femoral head on her left femur and hip who we traveled back and forth to Florida to see for two years. I am a single parent to Sophie and her sister Zoie, we exhausted all our funds on the last trip we had to go see Dr. Paley. Unfortunately, there are no other doctors that do the surgery Sophie needs which is SuperHip, Knee, and Ankle that she needs on her right leg and hip. Paley invented the surgery and has been her orthopedist along with her team of doctors in Michigan.

What We Are Raising Money For?

I have made this gofundme in hopes to raise money for the medical expenses and housing we need while we are in Florida. Unfortunately, insurance does not cover out-of-state doctors nor does it cover the surgery that would help my child live a fulfilled life and be more independent. They deem this an unnecessary surgery, which isn't the case. Me, Sophie, and Zoie will have to be in Florida for 4 to 6 weeks and then we would get to come back to Michigan for about three weeks but have to travel back for a follow-up. All donations will go towards her medical, therapy, transportation, and food/lodging.

Information On Health Conditions

Just so there is more information on what Sophie has here is the definition for each bone deformity. Bilateral Femoral Focal Deficiency (CFD/BPFFD) is a complex birth defect in which the upper part of the femur bone is either malformed, missing, or causing one leg to be shorter than the other. The most common form is in one leg but in Sophie's case, she has both legs affected by this she has type four. (BPFFD Information) Fibular Hemimelia is when a person was born with a shortened or missing fibula, other bones in the leg, ankle, and foot can be affected also. In Sophie's case, she is missing part of her knee in the right and ankle. (Fibular Hemimelia Info) Hip Dysplasia is a condition when the acetabulum is too shallow to support the femoral head and the hip itself is completely dislocated. Sophie's unfortunately is irreversible and will never fully be in the hip socket she has type five. (Hip Dysplasia Info)

What Other Doctors Have Said?

Sophie has two orthopedic surgeons that she has been seeing in Michigan one being Dr. Ahmed Bazzi whom she has seen since birth. Dr. Bazzi has tried to help in every way he can but has exhausted all his options to the best of his abilities. Her other orthopedic is named Dr. Ira Zaltz who will be removing Sophie's hardware in her left hip on April 4, 2023, and will be doing a femoral osteotomy. Doctor Zaltz wants to do a ratioplasty (Rotationplasty, commonly known as a Van Nes rotation or Borggreve rotation, is a type of autograft wherein a portion of a limb is removed, while the remaining limb below the involved portion is rotated and reattached.) on Sophie's right leg because in his medical expertise he believes that will be the only option for Sophie. Dr. Paley who did Sophie's SuperHip surgery in 2019 has other options so Sophie would be able to keep her complete leg. I believe Sophie's best interest and last chance of living a normal life and being able to walk properly would be going back to see Dr. Paley next to working with Dr. Zaltz.