Cerebral Palsy

In 1986, Kirk Vosbikian, a third grader at Parkway Elementary School, died of a rare form of cancer. Nine years later, his ordeal is inspiring a spirit of giving among the school's students and teachers, as evidenced by a display of affection for another ailing Parkway student. The teachers and students call their fund-raising campaign the Circle of Giving. So far, the students have donated $475.03 in pennies to Ronald McDonald House in Philadelphia. Plus, they sold about $500 worth of hoagies on Election Day for charities that benefit cerebral palsy.

A Philadelphia court of common pleas jury on Friday awarded $78.5 million to a woman whose 3-year-old son suffers from cerebral palsy because of what the jury found were faulty diagnostic procedures by Pottstown Memorial Medical Center, where the child was delivered. Lawyers for the woman, 34-year-old Victoria Upsey, said she arrived at the hospital in August 2008 with signs of complications that caused her unborn child to be deprived of oxygen. Their experts contended during the trial that a prompt delivery could have averted the problem, but that the physician handling the case initially concluded that the baby already had died after performing an ultrasound.

A major report on the causes of cerebral palsy is renewing debate over how often, and how much, a physician is to blame when a baby is born with the disorder. The 95-page document, issued by two leading physicians groups, concludes that cerebral palsy is rarely caused by lack of oxygen, or asphyxia, during labor and delivery. It also sets out nine criteria for judging whether a child's disability is due to asphyxia, and whether it occurred during birth. Trial lawyers have denounced the report as self-serving and dangerous.

Steven Roach always loved karate: He read about it, watched martial-arts movies and dreamed about studying it. But because he has cerebral palsy, Roach, 17, and almost everyone else thought he could never actually practice karate. Now, after four months of lessons, the Doylestown Township student has earned his second karate belt and says the martial art has done more for him than almost an entire lifetime of physical therapy for cerebral palsy, which damages the central nervous system.

Butch Dow has what some people would call an attitude. Here's how his works: "I have a mild case of cerebral palsy," he was telling me last night. We were sitting at the kitchen table in his rowhouse in South Philadelphia. His aluminum crutches were propped against a cabinet. "How long could you stand on your legs without the crutches?" I asked. "About five seconds," he said. Then he told me how long it took from the time he was born until he first walked as a kid. "Thirteen years," he said.

New evidence suggests that cerebral palsy, a disabling disorder in newborns that causes a lifetime of problems, can be triggered by infections and blood clots in the fetus. Researchers found telltale signs of such infections and blood clots by tracking down certain chemicals in the blood of babies who were later diagnosed with cerebral palsy. The insight will not immediately lead to treatment, diagnosis or prevention, but provides important clues into the secrets of a maddeningly mysterious disease.

A Delaware County Court jury has awarded a New Jersey couple $9 million on their claim that poor prenatal care by a Main Line doctor caused the woman to deliver her baby prematurely, which resulted in the child's developing cerebral palsy. The jury on Tuesday found in favor of Steven and Marcy Weiner Lahav of Mullica Hill, who had claimed that their son Adam, now 5, was found to have cerebral palsy when he was about a year old. The judgment against Dr. Stephen P. Krell and Main Line Ob-Gyn Associates of Wayne is believed to be one of the largest ever granted in the county.

"The bravest are surely those who have the clearest vision of what is before them, glory and danger alike, and yet notwithstanding, go out to meet it. " - Thucydides Greek historian Tara Mastroeni gripped the shiny steel railing, gingerly easing her small body into the water until it crept to her neck. Nearby lay two green crutches, dropped into a cross. Tara's cerebral palsy binds her to crutches and a wheelchair on land. But immersed, this 10-year-old athlete is liberated.

After Jason's foster mother dresses him in the morning, he swings into action for the day. He sits down on the living room floor, takes off both shoes and one sock and twirls the sock around in the air. Then he pads out to the kitchen to eat anything that's set before him, as his appetite is zesty. Jason, 1 1/2, is in good health and has an average IQ. He has mild cerebral palsy, which is a non-progressive condition, not a disease. It's usually caused by damage to the motor-controlled centers of the brain.

His face beaming with pride and anticipation, the 13-year-old boy who was about to become a man intently watched the rabbi and the congregation. Taking his cues from the rabbi, he offered the traditional songs, prayers and blessings from the Torah in English, Hebrew and his native Russian. Eugene can't walk, talk or use his hands because of cerebral palsy. Yesterday, though, with the aid of a special computer synthesizer to help him "speak," he was able to fulfill a dream. He was bar mitzvahed at Congregation Beth Am Israel in Penn Valley.

Looks to be a busy summer along the Schuylkill, where stalwarts can work up a sweat for such causes as the Strides for Stroke 5K Run/Walk, the Run For Your Life, and the Undy 5000, which sounds racier than it is — a fund-raiser to fight colon cancer. For each activity — 16 are planned for Saturday and Sundays between now and the end of September — the city hands over Martin Luther King Drive, which it already closes to cars on weekends. This raises a delicate question: Are there too many of these good ideas clogging up the river drives?

A Philadelphia court of common pleas jury on Friday awarded $78.5 million to a woman whose 3-year-old son suffers from cerebral palsy because of what the jury found were faulty diagnostic procedures by Pottstown Memorial Medical Center, where the child was delivered. Lawyers for the woman, 34-year-old Victoria Upsey, said she arrived at the hospital in August 2008 with signs of complications that caused her unborn child to be deprived of oxygen. Their experts contended during the trial that a prompt delivery could have averted the problem, but that the physician handling the case initially concluded that the baby already had died after performing an ultrasound.

A South Philadelphia couple were charged with murder Wednesday after their 6-year-old son died Monday night at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, police said. Tina Cuffie, 44, and Latiff Hadi, 48, of 22d Street near McClellan Street, allegedly abused and malnourished their son Khalil Wimes, police said. "Police informed us that the child was 29 pounds," said Alicia Taylor, spokeswoman for the city Department of Human Services. Citing confidentiality laws, she said she could not discuss the case further.

Ramon is a personable teen with a great smile. The 16-year-old is known for his pleasant, friendly manner and his sense of humor. He likes to please others and thrives on one-on-one attention. Ramon enjoys watching television, listening to music, visiting with friends and family, shopping at the mall, and attending birthday parties. Ramon has been diagnosed with cerebral palsy. Although he depends on a wheelchair, he is becoming more mobile with time and therapy. He is now able to walk with help in maintaining his balance.

An affectionate 2-year-old, Quadeer loves to be held and cuddled. His endearing smile and laugh draw people, even strangers, to him. He is delighted when his foster father playfully "roughhouses" with him and he loves to spend time in the pool. Quadeer has been diagnosed with cerebral palsy and uses a wheelchair. Although he is not verbal, this adorable child makes his needs and desires known with his eyes and through body language. He receives early-education services and occupational, speech, physical, and feeding therapies.

Hit-run driver sought Police are seeking the public's help in identifying a hit-and-run driver who struck and injured a 4-year-old boy in the Northeast yesterday morning. The child was playing with his father on Pratt Street near Frankford Avenue when he suddenly ran into the street about 8:20 a.m. and was hit by the driver of a silver Lincoln Town Car, believed to be a 2004 model. The motorist, believed to be a male, stopped for a few seconds, then fled the scene. The child was taken to St. Christopher's Hospital for Children and was in stable condition.

The neighborhood around 55th Street and Lansdowne Avenue was a place of love and caring. It was a place where everyone knew everyone else and looked out for each other. "Naomi Edmond personified that love and nurturance," said a former neighbor, Jean Waites-Howard, an evangelist and social worker. "We knew every family in our neighborhood," Jean said. "There were enough kids that everyone played together and didn't have to venture out of our circle for playmates. " Naomi Edmond, who left a banking career to care for special-neeeds children at the Widener Memorial School, a devoted churchwoman and family matriarch, died Thursday.

Barbara Ciric let her 3-year-old cat, Peter, out for a morning stroll Thursday in rural Atlantic County, and he returned with a shocking surprise: a 61/2-inch crossbow bolt piercing his head. "I was horrified," said Ciric, of West Beach Road in Buena Vista Township. The projectile penetrated the right eye socket, but pushed the eyeball aside. Ciric said she would not know for several days whether her cat would be blind in his right eye. She reported the situation to police, then rushed her cat to Shore Veterinarians in Williamstown.

FOR PREPPY, potential Big Brother Tim Schanne, then 30, the first meeting was like a job interview. For streetwise potential Little Brother Dean Kanas, then 12, it was a like a dip in goo. Tim says he tried - a little too hard - to be witty and clever. Dean was thinking, "Who is this nerd?" As Tim tells me, "It's funny how little we had in common. " Painful might be the better word. The Big Brothers organization asks volunteers only for a couple of hours a day a couple of times a month for a year.

Authorities and a family are wondering why someone would dig up and steal the body of a 9-year-old girl buried long ago in Lancaster. Paula Ream, who had cerebral palsy, never walked or talked before she died in 1962, family members told the Intelligencer Journal. Her three sisters would carry her everywhere. "Was it because it was Friday the 13th? Or some cult? Or somebody being initiated into something?" said one of the sisters, Fay Hamm, 71, of East Petersburg, Lancaster County.