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P A T I E N T E X P E R I E N C E – A T A X I A
NAME: Christine Gray
COUNTRY: Canada
AGE: 47
DIAGNOSIS: Sporadic Spinocerebellar Ataxia 2 (May 2004)
REASON FOR COMING FOR TREATMENT: Diagnosed with Spinocerebellar Ataxia type 2 in May of 2004. She had been treated with I.V. antioxidant reduced glutathione, calcium EAP, and NADH. She also showed an allergy to mold sporobolomycies. As a result, she was receiving allergy desensitization serum. In the past one to two years, there has been dramatic progression in her speech difficulties and she had balance/gait problems.
START OF TREATMENT: December 20, 2006
BEFORE THE TREATMENT:
Videos (Dec 25th): Before1, Before2
The patient's main problem was her ability to walk. She described her walk as being "Frankenstein" -like, specifically referring to unresponsive or stiff muscles that inhibited her from maintaining a natural gait. In the videos 'Before 1' and 'Before 2' she is seen in physiotherapy sessions, shimmying along a level surface and clearly requires the handrail to maintain balance. Her fine motor skills, such as the ability to write, had deteriorated. Other symptoms include slowed speech and weakened throat muscles, fatigue and prolonged pain/soreness, though does not go into specifics in the videos. She complained of a decrease in her mental well-being as a result of her physical and neurological symptoms.
AFTER THE TREATMENT (January 16, 2007): In the middle of the course of treatment, the patient exhibited stark improvements in her ability to walk, documented in video 'Middle 2', in which she walks unsupported down a small staircase. At this stage she still needed to compose herself between steps and could not tandem walk, though she continued to improve, and by the end of treatment she could walk comfortably up and down the staircase with considerably less composure time. She also regained the ability to shimmy unsupported along an angled surface, and later described her improvements in detail (video 'End 1'), likening her increase in muscle control in her legs to "Shock-absorbers in a car." The patient felt her legs would continue to improve with more physiotherapy. She also reported improvements in fine motor skills and said that the soreness had almost disappeared, summarizing that she was, "Not perfect, didn't expect to be but it's [the symptoms] much better."
VIDEOS Jan 3rd, Middle2 Jan 11th: Later1, Later2 Jan 16th: End1, End2 On Hospital: Staff1, Staff2
Update (April 19, 2007):
Hard to believe it's been 3 months. My abilities are still good - I have good and bad days, but mostly I'm doing better all the time. Sometimes it's like the clock's been rolled back several years! I still ache at times, but it usually goes away. My energy is great, and my mental well-being is 100% better.
Some things I can do more easily now or couldn't do at all before include walking and striding, using stairs without a railing, using a chair, stepping on and off curbs, carrying cups of liquids without spilling anything, speaking without slurring my words, balancing on one foot to reach for something, and writing. I practice daily on the treadmill, balancing board and stairs, and for fine motor skills I play solitaire, use a screw board or squeezeball, write, button and unbutton a shirt. I think these exercises have made a big difference for me.
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