P A T I E N T E X P E R I E N C E – B R A I N I N J U R Y

NAME: Adrian Blazevic

SEX: Male

COUNTRY: Australia

AGE: 21 years old

REASON FOR COMING FOR TREATMENT: The patient fell approximately 30m in February 2004, suffering severe brain trauma. He is wheelchair bound, non-verbal, requires assistance to eat (feeding tube) and fully dependent on helpers in all physical aspects. His spine is undamaged. He is cognitive and communicative. In December 2006 Adrian came to Beijing with his mother and brother, for his first stem cell treatment. During the 10 months that passed since his first stem cell injection, Adrian showed significant progress which led his family to the decision to return to Beijing for a second treatment.

DIAGNOSIS: Traumatic Brain Injury

BEGINNING OF 2nd TREATMENT: 10th August 2007

CONDITION BEFORE TREATMENT AND DURING THE 8 MONTHS FOLLOWING HIS 1ST TREATMENT:

See Videos: before1 , before2

The patient had continued to undergo physiotherapy and hydro-immersion therapy at his home. The therapy has provided his family with benchmarks against which to measure improvements.

A prominent claim made by the mother in interview is that prior to the first treatment, the patient was unable to do bicycle steps in hydrotherapy. Immediately after stem cell treatment, he had regained this ability. This is not a natural ability (rather one that must be learned) implying this motion was still remembered by the patient. Following this episode, the family purchased an exercise bike allowing him to practice this motion further, claiming he has the capability to do 2km of rotations in 20 minutes. The machine also enables him to carry out similar movements with his arms.

The mother lists leg strength and mobility (specifically reporting an increase in strength when pushing against a surface), relaxation in the arm muscles, improved ability to make and hold facial expressions and eye contact, improved swallowing (attested by the fact that the patient no longer requires a thick liquid diet and an now swallow other liquids such as water), a longer concentration span, increased social ability and better sleeping patterns. Vocally, the pitches of the sounds he can make have widened though he can still only communicate with two 'yes' and 'no' sounds.

AFTER TREATMENT:

See Videos: after1 , after PT

The mother reports further increases in his strength, most notably his legs. She describes his ability to walk as being, "A lot stronger," referring to his ability to walk a set distance in a shorter length of time. His muscles also decreased in tension, allowing his left arm a wider range of movement.

Also in reference to the patient's increased muscle strength, she demonstrates in interview how he has regained the ability to hold his head up when sitting in a vertical position, stating that previously he needed inclined seating to look forwards.

His communicative abilities have also improved, notably his concentration and eye contact. Eye tests carried out confirmed a wider angular range for rotation of his eyeballs. In addition, his sleeping patterns are better, his appetite has increased and his tactile sensation is good.

Initial Treatment

Marked improvements in the tension in his face enabled him to make a wider range of facial expressions and a looser jaw enabled him to hold his mouth closed in a natural position. The patient also underwent a minor decrease in tension in his arms, improving the responsiveness of the muscles and enabling him to raise his left arm slightly further from a horizontal position (see video series 'After'). When being held to a standing position he could hold his upper body better than before.

He exhibited a higher degree of coordination in the legs when walking, specifically the left leg, which was able to move to a position in front of the right. His right leg could move to a position parallel with the left. The patient still appears to require almost total body support (an assistant behind bearing the majority of the his weight and two assistants to guide the legs), though his brother Nathan, who assisted in physiotherapy exercises, reported a decrease in the amount of support the patient required. His mother said he is able to walk in this fashion for a maximum of ten steps, which she claims is, "A major improvement."

In interview, the patient's mother claims he now has more relaxed arms, more mouth movement, more facial expressions and can maintain eye contact and track motion for longer, assessing him as having, "Generally more control." She also added, "Adrian has always improved since the accident, but at a very slow pace. In the last eight weeks, the improvements have been significantly quicker." He could stand on his knees for a short while – an exercise he had never done before.

Nurses reported that his skin color changed and looked healthier.

Adrian went back to Australia with his Family. They are hoping to come back for another treatment in 6 months.