7:30am
Taylor may be moving closer to having the facial reanimation surgery.
His Doctor at Shands Hospital at the University of Florida, Dr. Adelson, told us about a surgical procedure developed by Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore to reanimate the face of patients who have suffered paralysis.
Last June, Dr. Adelson did a "sling" procedure on Taylor where he inserted an elastic band inside the cheek that attached to the bone near the ear. The other end was stitched to his upper and lower lip and the corner of his mouth. The band tightens the mouth to prevent the pronounced droop that develops in those that have facial paralysis. That made a HUGE difference in his appearance.
In 2007, Dr. Patrick Byrne at Johns Hopkins developed a new procedure called "Temporalis Muscle Transposition" to help patients with facial paralysis. A chewing muscle connected to the chewing system of muscles, located in the temple are, is transplanted to the cheek on the paralyzed side of the face. This helps restore movement, allowing for a better smile and increased eye protection.
You can see some before and after pictures by clicking here. The before pictures of the top two patients in the left column had paralysis similar to Taylor's. As you can tell, the patients now most likely look just like they did before the paralysis.
We've been in touch with Dr. Byrne's office during the past week and yesterday his office requested photos and video of Taylor making certain expressions so that the Doctor can evaluate him and determine if he's a good candidate for this surgery.
He only recently said the facial paralysis bothered him and made him "self-conscious" about his appearance. It's the first time he's commented about it. But, he has never been much of a complainer and has an amazing threshold for pain so it takes a lot for him to admit that.
We're also working on an appointment with a Surgeon in Tampa to see if Taylor's left eye can be realigned. Although the prism glasses he wears helps to realign his sight, it's still difficult for him. There has been no further natural correction of the alignment of his eyes, so it may not further improve without surgery.
A friend of ours was in a near fatal car crash in 2006 that resulted in a head injury. His sight was affected much like Taylor's was. The Surgeon that Taylor will see was able to realign his vision.
It may be impossible to have both of these procedures done by Taylor's birthday in September. That's when he will no longer be carried on our insurance policy. And, we're haven't begun yet to explore other insurance options. So he may have to pick which of the two he wants the most while he's still on this policy.
We had a long talk the other night about these two procedures. Taylor wants to do both, but doesn't want to miss even 1 day of school to do it. And, he wants to go to the summer term again this year. Scheduling the surgeries could be a trick.
Taylor has gotten back so much more than many people that suffered similar injuries. If, for some reason, he's not able to have these surgeries or they don't work, he's still in much better shape than he could have been.
Keep your fingers crossed
Taylor may be moving closer to having the facial reanimation surgery.
His Doctor at Shands Hospital at the University of Florida, Dr. Adelson, told us about a surgical procedure developed by Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore to reanimate the face of patients who have suffered paralysis.
Last June, Dr. Adelson did a "sling" procedure on Taylor where he inserted an elastic band inside the cheek that attached to the bone near the ear. The other end was stitched to his upper and lower lip and the corner of his mouth. The band tightens the mouth to prevent the pronounced droop that develops in those that have facial paralysis. That made a HUGE difference in his appearance.
In 2007, Dr. Patrick Byrne at Johns Hopkins developed a new procedure called "Temporalis Muscle Transposition" to help patients with facial paralysis. A chewing muscle connected to the chewing system of muscles, located in the temple are, is transplanted to the cheek on the paralyzed side of the face. This helps restore movement, allowing for a better smile and increased eye protection.
You can see some before and after pictures by clicking here. The before pictures of the top two patients in the left column had paralysis similar to Taylor's. As you can tell, the patients now most likely look just like they did before the paralysis.
We've been in touch with Dr. Byrne's office during the past week and yesterday his office requested photos and video of Taylor making certain expressions so that the Doctor can evaluate him and determine if he's a good candidate for this surgery.
He only recently said the facial paralysis bothered him and made him "self-conscious" about his appearance. It's the first time he's commented about it. But, he has never been much of a complainer and has an amazing threshold for pain so it takes a lot for him to admit that.
We're also working on an appointment with a Surgeon in Tampa to see if Taylor's left eye can be realigned. Although the prism glasses he wears helps to realign his sight, it's still difficult for him. There has been no further natural correction of the alignment of his eyes, so it may not further improve without surgery.
A friend of ours was in a near fatal car crash in 2006 that resulted in a head injury. His sight was affected much like Taylor's was. The Surgeon that Taylor will see was able to realign his vision.
It may be impossible to have both of these procedures done by Taylor's birthday in September. That's when he will no longer be carried on our insurance policy. And, we're haven't begun yet to explore other insurance options. So he may have to pick which of the two he wants the most while he's still on this policy.
We had a long talk the other night about these two procedures. Taylor wants to do both, but doesn't want to miss even 1 day of school to do it. And, he wants to go to the summer term again this year. Scheduling the surgeries could be a trick.
Taylor has gotten back so much more than many people that suffered similar injuries. If, for some reason, he's not able to have these surgeries or they don't work, he's still in much better shape than he could have been.
Keep your fingers crossed
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