4-16-09
Julia had a follow up with her physiatrist today.....that is a doctor of physical therapy. Julia's physical therapists had been wondering about the braces that she has for her legs, and whether they were really necessary or if they needed to be changed, etc....so, we saw Dr Apkon today. She said that she is really happy with the way Julia's right leg and foot look. She is not thrilled with the left foot and lower leg, but feels the brace she has for that leg is overkill....so we get to get a new one......She is worried that if we just forgo the brace, she will end up with problems in one of her tendons and need surgical correction.....so we will get set up for a new brace. Hopefully Julia will leave it on! That was the whole problem with the last set of braces! She took them off, even when I duct taped them on! Dr Apkon also recommended a cast for Julia's right arm....to prevent her from using it so freely so that she is forced to use the left one more...she said there have been studies from older stroke victims, who years later used this approach, and they were able to see definite changes, even on MRI's of their brains. The cast is removable....that is nice for bath time, etc... I asked her about when I should expect things to plateau with her gains, and she said, for motor stuff, usually by age 7. So she has four more years to improve! That is great news! As far as cognitively, she suggested having some formal tests done that are made for nonverbal individuals in two years to see where she is at. I wish we didn't have to wait so long for that, but she said it is just too hard to test when they are so young and nonverbal. Personally, I think she understands a lot, all things considered. So, overall it was a relatively positive appointment. Talk to you later!