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Traumatic Brain Injury
Cadin
At the tender age of 1 month, Cadin, one
of two beautiful twins, fell and landed on his head. Although he appeared fine with only a small bruise, several days later he
experienced some minor seizures. Cat scans indicated that he had suffered swelling and bleeding in his brain. He
was given a Becker drain and medications at the hospital where he spent the next 3 weeks of his young
life. In addition to the seizures, his mother Kristy learned that Cadin was blind; a
condition some of the hospital neurosurgeons indicated would be permanent. She
was offered little hope and was told that he might live out his life in a
vegetable state.
Undaunted by what she had heard
and determined to find some answers, Kristy began to do some research – on the
website, in magazines, anywhere there might be some helpful information. Friends
told her about Dr. Neubauer and Ocean Hyperbaric Neurological Center and in
November she brought Cadin to Florida for therapy.
The HBOT (Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatment) Cadin received was aided by prescribed
vaso dilator treatments that served to open up Cadin’s blood vessels.
Now, after 140 treatments,
Cadin’s vision is almost normal. Physical and speech therapy were
provided him in conjunction with his HBOT. His muscles have clearly
strengthened through the use of “The Suit” and he has now started taking steps
on his own. Cadin, always the cuddlier of the two twins, was the one to give his
mom that first kiss – a moment she won’t ever forget.
Kristy told us that no one in
the hospital had discussed alternative treatments such as HBOT so she strongly
recommends that parents in a similar situation do their own research because
“you can’t expect your doctor to know everything.” Because of her untiring
efforts, there is a future for Cadin.
Megan
At the age of 13 Megan suffered a severe head injury from a horseback riding
accident leaving her in a coma for 5 months. As a result she had to learn to do everything all over again (i.e. potty
training, speech, rolling, crawling, etc...) Her progress was slow and it wasn’t until 2 years after the accident that we
discovered Dr. Neubauer and the hyperbaric oxygen treatments.
When Megan and her dad first
came to the Ocean Hyperbaric Center she was still in a wheelchair, her left foot
and ankle were in a brace, she couldn’t bend her left knee due to spasticity
(doctors at the time recommended to cut and reattach tendons to help reduce
spasticity) we said no and are thankful to Dr. Neubauer and his treatments in
helping spasticity. Megan’s speech was very poor, she could crawl a little, she
tried to use a walker but was dangerously unstable, and her sort term memory was
very impaired.
She was in special education classes with math skills at a 2nd grade level,
having been in algebra prior to the accident.
Megan’s teacher noticed a
difference in her cognitively after her first 40 treatments and we noticed a
little bit better speech. We have gone back 5 times and Megan progressed out of special education classes
to regular education and graduated from high school June 2004 and is currently
attending College.
She walks with us holding her
gait belt, her speech has improved dramatically, her spasticity and her balance
have also improved. She has been out of her brace for about a year now. Since
treatments last summer she is reading books again (200 + pages) in length and in
the last 3 months she has become independent with a walker in our home. After
just 4 treatments this trip (Jan. ’05), Megan told me she remembered her 7th
grade P.E. locker combination and she feels more flexible and her spasticity
continues to improve. Dr. Neubauer is confident Megan will be walking independently shortly and we
would like to thank Dr. Neubauer and his staff for all the support and
confidence they have given us the last 3 years.
Shawn
Like many of us, Shawn Thomas regularly drove to work. Unfortunately, last
March, the Ohio ironworker was in a severe auto accident. He suffered a broken
clavicle, a fractured pelvis, one of his lungs collapsed, and he had multiple
ribs fractured. During the following 4 weeks in the Intensive Care unit of
an Akron hospital and another 2 months in a rehabilitation clinic, it became
apparent that Shawn’s life would change from the traumatic brain injury he
suffered. At the end of his rehabilitation, Shawn was only semi-aware of his
surroundings, had limited movement, a high degree of spasticity, was unable to
talk, and was G-tube dependent. Wife Jody and mom Cathy, a registered nurse, were told not to be optimistic
about Shawn’s future.
Looking to the Internet for
some help, Jody read about hyperbarics and, after talking with some of the
staff, decided to have Shawn treated at Ocean Hyperbarics. She’s really glad she
did. After only 21 treatments, Shawn has control of his hands and arms, has
regained much of his muscle tone and is much more aware of his surroundings.
Where before he could barely hold his head up, he now sits up, understands what
people are saying, and make his needs known by speaking in full sentences. He
eats everything. Jody reports that he’s a bit sloppy, but she’s so happy that
he’s doing it by himself without a G-tube–that the after meal clean up is a
labor of love.
Shawn recently began walking
with some assistance. Another 20 treatments are planned and Jody and Cathy hope
that at the end of those treatments, Shawn will be able to walk without any
help. His progress has been so great that his long-term prognosis has been
changing for the better almost daily. His beautiful 4-year old daughter has been
doing her part too. Each day during Shawn’s treatment she would lean over the
chamber and repeatedly say, “Daddy, I love you”. At first the best Shawn could
manage was a smile, but on the 16th treatment, he found the strength to whisper
back “I love you too”.
When asked for some words of
wisdom for others, Cathy urged caregivers to be pushy and not to let the
indifference of the medical community stand in the way of solutions. They seem
to be afraid to recommend or even consider the things they don’t know a lot
about.” Jody added, “Don’t give up – there is always hope. Take it day by day.”
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