New Treatment March 2011

Hello Dear Readers

Just when we thought we were settled into a routine for years to come, we get a new breath of fresh air. It doesn't start all too nicely though as Shawna's neurologist passed away quite unexpectedly from a fast growing cancer. Now we have to go it alone until a new one can be brought on board. Our Case manager has been assisting us in trying to line up new brain imaging technology which would show the areas of Shawna's brain that are working and those that are not. This would give us ways to reach her and understand which therapies would be more effective...It would give us a direction for therapy. A couple of weeks ago I was researching SPECT imaging on-line and came across a very interesting article involving SPECT and Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy(HBOT) and successful treatment of late TBIs. Needless to say I was energized and became totally engulfed in reading articles, printing them off for Deb to read(who was at choir that night), and emailing potential treatment centres for information. One facility which was OHIP funded declined to treat Shawna as it is not an Ontario-approved treatment for her condition. The other facility in Mississauga readily set us up for a consultation on Saturday March 12. The facility operator stated that he had several TBI patients attending with varied results. It was hard to sleep the next few nights as we waited for Saturday to come. We arrived at the facility on time and were expecting to be interviewed by a doctor regarding using this treatment. We were a little disappointed to find out there was a doctor on staff but this facility was just the treatment provider and did not do any research before or after the sessions. While we were ready to start the treatments right away we came away with more questions and concerns. Shawna would have to have tubes put in her ears to equalize pressure as she cannot yawn or swallow or chew on command. The MRIs and SPECT imaging would have to be lined up by us or our insurer as OHIP would take weeks to get it. Medicines are absorbed into the body faster under pressure so we would have to alter her medicine intake or arrange for treatment at a specific time to avoid complications.
The basics of Hyperbaric Oxygen therapy are fairly simple. The patient is enclosed in a chamber which is brought 1.5 to 2.8 times the regular pressure we endure every day. When breathing pure oxygen the oxygen is absorbed into the body not only by the blood but it is absorbed into the plasma, spinal fluid, and bone marrow. With a brain injury there are brain cells which are damaged but not destroyed, and the neurons are not getting proper oxygen because the blood cannot get into the constricted areas. When the oxygen finds another vehicle such as plasma and spinal fluid to get to these neurons they become active and brain pathways are strengthened. There is a theory that the oxygen in the bone marrow produces new stem cells which also aid in healing. Regular air is pumped in and exhausted at regular intervals to eliminate Oxygen poisoning. These treatments take 2 hrs. Deb will be going in the first few times for company to ease the claustrophobia of being in the tube. Shawna can watch TV and the sound is piped in. We also can hear what is going on inside the tube. For the first few "dives" the doctor will be there to make sure all is right. Later on some of Shawna's friends have volunteered to be a dive partner with Shawna.
Our Insurance company has agreed to fund the MRI and SPECT imaging to be done in Newmarket at the start of treatment and are also covering the first series of HBOT treatments. Shawna will have tubes put in her ears on Monday Mar 28,2011 and her first HBOT session on Mar 30,2011 at 400 pm. We will be doing 40 sessions at 1 per workday for 8 weeks. All other therapy has been cancelled for two weeks to see how things go. Later we will reintroduce the therapy in the early afternoons, and may increase the therapy depending on how she responds to the treatment. After the 40 treatments we will take a break to asses the results and determine if this was a success. If Shawna experiences more brain function we will dramatically increase other therapies to maximize opportunities for 3 months as we prepare for our daughter Jessica's wedding. After that we will continue with the HBOT sessions. If there is no discernible results looking at the imaging and physical results then we will continue with the regular therapy as we have in place for the last year or so.
We realize this is in God's hand and we continue to rely solely on Him for our daily bread. We are so thankful that He put this information on our path because nothing comes by chance but all comes from His fatherly hand. Others had brought this to our attention previously but on advice of our neurologist we were told not to pursue it two years ago. So it stayed buried till our neurologist passed away and we continued to try to find ways to assist Shawna. The medical field continues to develop and this type of treatment is accepted in USA, China and U.K. Studies have shown some fantastic results which we can only hope some of them Shawna can experience.

Isaiah 26: 3,4 "You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you. Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD , the LORD is the Rock eternal"

Thanking you for your prayers

Al, Deb, Shawna and family