Help Lauren Mae Walk again

Lauren Mae was born January 8th, 2011. She had an at birth diagnosis of Down syndrome.  While many struggle with this news, us included, we can say that Lauren has truly been a gift to our family.   Early in her life she had heart surgery to correct a heart defect, called a VSD, which at the time was a very difficult event for our family.  Since that time she has been largely healthy.   There are many that are not so lucky.   As others with children with Down Syndrome know our kids have what is called hypotonia which is a fancy way of saying they are very flexible.  Some of us might like some increased flexibility but in Lauren’s case it has led to a significant problem.  Over the course of the last year she has become more withdrawn spending more time in her room and less time being active with the family.   Since Lauren is non-verbal, we mistakenly assumed that this was merely a behavioral decision to avoid a hectic household.  However, earlier in this year she fell at school knocking one of her knees completely out of joint.   She had always been able to pop them in an out due to the hypotonia but in this case it did not go back in place.   A trip to the ER and subsequent visit to Gillette’s Children’s hospital informed us that Lauren does not have normal knee socket development due to the hypotonia.   The groove in the tibia that most of us have simply did not develop because of the flexibility of the femur to move outside the normal space.    Now, at 8 years old because of her increased weight, the tendons can no longer keep the knee properly positioned.    On Valentines Day 2019, Lauren will undergo a femural knee osteotomy on both legs.  This involves removing a wedge from the femur of each leg to position the femur properly.  In addition, plates are installed to keep the bones positioned so the normal knee groove is developed.   It is a significant procedure that will keep our daughter in recovery and therapy for many months but is necessary for her to walk.  It is especially hard since Lauren does not have the cognitive ability to understand what is happening. We do have health insurance but like most it unfortunately it does not completely cover the costs.  We are asking for help in covering the costs our insurance will not cover and numerous services she will require while she learns to walk again.   I thank you for listening to our story and considering helping us.