By Curt Williams, Founder & Executive Director
If you have been reading our newsletters for a while you have heard about Brody, the boy (he’d protest this descriptive term, as he’d like you to know that he is presently 16 and a half years old) who has been with us since last May.
Brody was born in China with spina bifida, and shortly after birth, his exposed spine was surgically covered and he was placed for adoption. A Christian family adopted Brody, but eventually, he caused such a string of disruptions within the home that he was placed in a group home. Youth-Reach is Brody’s third and final group home, and it was here in Houston that we began to investigate ways in which Brody’s crippled legs and halting walk might be improved. If he cannot find medical help in Houston, help is not available.
We first took him to our friend, Dr. Scott McKinney, an orthopedic surgeon specializing in feet and ankles. After multiple x-rays and a thorough exam, Dr. McKinney referred Brody to Dr. Jacob Weinberg, a pediatric orthopedist, and from there we gained an appointment with Dr. Scott Rosenfeld, a famed hip specialist with Texas Children’s Hospital.
Each of these physicians was amazed at Brody’s ability to adapt to his disability, and though they may provide care or possibly additional surgeries in the future, none was the right fit to begin Brody’s intervention. Then we met with Dr. Vinitha Shenava, a pediatric surgeon at Texas Children’s West campus. There were more X-rays, and Dr. Shenava performed a detailed exam. She has agreed that surgical intervention is possible and needed to improve Brody’s quality of life. This month we are taking Brody in for a gait study, and after this, his first surgery will be performed to shorten his left leg by removing three-fourths of an inch of bone. He will leave the hospital on crutches, be walking in three months and playing basketball again in six months. Despite warnings of painful physical therapy and rehab, Brody very quickly agreed to proceed.
Please keep Brody in your prayers as we work to give him the opportunity he never thought possible.
