We’ve been keeping our eyes out for more information regarding cord blood being used to treat cerebral palsy. Well, this morning, another promising story has come through the wires and we wanted to be the first ones to bring it to your attention.
Chloe Levine was 9-months old when her parents noticed she couldn’t use her right hand properly. She was also unable to raise her hands above her head and her ability to crawl was severely limited.
A CAT scan at 12 months revealed that Chloe’s brain had not developed properly and contained fluid. Chloe’s parents decided then to take her daughter to a neurologist who diagnosed the child with hemiplegic cerebral palsy.
The Levine’s were told of an experimental procedure at Duke University in North Carolina where children with cerebral palsy were infused with their own cord blood (which contains stem cells) to heal and repair damaged brain tissue.
This process requires that parents have the foresight to bank their children’s cordblood at birth. Two months ago, Chloe received an infusion of her own stem cells and her progress began to show almost immediately.
“Her therapist said she’s made a 50 percent recovery,” Chloe’s father said. “She can walk, run, and do sign language with her right hand.”
Amazing!