" I applaud China for being in the front of medical breakthroughs and giving people hope. Thank you for what you have done and for letting me come to China. I look forward to the day when I can return. "
P A T I E N T E X P E R I E N C E – C E R E B R A L P A L S Y
2009 Update: We've collected all the videos below into one video file presented today at Vimeo. If you'd like to watch it please head over to Konnor's page here.
NAME: Konnor Boles
AGE: 3
COUNTRY: USA
DIAGNOSIS: Quad Spastic Cerebral Palsy
REASON FOR COMING TO TREATMENT: After being born through an emergency C section, Konnor had low oxygen levels and had to be moved to an intensive care unit. After taking him home for several months, his parents noticed that he was not reaching the standard benchmarks for children his own age, such as crawling, and took him to several doctors, one of which finally diagnosed him with Cerebral Palsy. Since then he continued to be developmentally delayed compared to other children his age.
TREATMENT: Umbilical Cord Stem Cell and Nerve Growth Factor Injections with Rehabilitation Therapy.
START OF TREATMENT: Oct 29, 2007
BEFORE THE TREATMENT: Konnor’s condition left his muscles weak and he lacked normal control of them. His trunk muscles were particularly weak, and he had great trouble sitting up or holding his body up by himself. The muscle tone in his arms and legs was very high, which made it impossible for him to walk or crawl. He was able to pull himself across the floor to get around. He was beginning to talk, though his speech was delayed and he had difficulty saying some sounds.
See Konnor's clips combined and subtitled into one video (and streaming) on Vimeo.
AFTER THE TREATMENT: Konnor had several important improvements in his condition while he was in China taking stem cell treatments. His overall muscle strength improved and his tone lessoned so that he was better able to control his legs and arms. He was able to grab onto the bars of his crib and pull himself up, something he did not have the strength or the coordination to do before. From lying down in a prone position, he was now able to push himself up into a sitting one. Furthermore, his stronger muscles helped his walking and crawling become more efficient. Also, his speech quickly improved during the treatment, he started to speak in sentences and even picked up several Chinese words.
