Nerves connected like electric wires to revitalize non-functioning body parts. An unprecedented surgery in Europa which was performed at Torino on a child of just under two years: the operation, carried out at the Regina Margherita children’s hospital, will allow the child to be accompanied towards the partial recovery of the movements of the right leg, paralyzed for nine months due to the consequences of a sudden and devastating illness. The technique, already applied in the United States, has been described as “pioneering” in subalpine healthcare settings. It involves transferring healthy nerve branches (in this case from the distal muscles of the abdomen and the sciatic nerve) to non-functioning ones (thigh, buttock) so that, growing one or two millimeters a day, they can supply their precious impulses to the injured part.
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Acute flaccid myelitis, the very rare disease that had paralyzed him
After a common bout of flu, the child was struck by acute flaccid myelitis (AFM), a very rare neurological disease that attacks the spinal cord by damaging the cells that transmit motor signals to the muscles.
Since then the leg had been inert. The operation carried out by surgeons Paolo Titolo, Bruno Battiston and Nathalie Bini lasted seven hours under the supervision of Amy Moore, of the “Ohio State University”, considered one of the world‘s leading experts in the sector. “The child is fine – they inform the Città della Salute – and the rehabilitation process, carried out through collaboration between different hospital divisions, has begun”.
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The father’s comments are shaped by caution, competence and lucidity. «Times – he explains – will be very long. Total recovery of limb functionality would be beautiful, beautiful, but we believe it won’t be possible and we don’t expect it. Even an incomplete restoration of motor ability will be a success because he will mean that the child will be able to move more easily. In any case, what the doctors have done in Turin is incredible».
The man, an entrepreneur, with an engineering degree, lives together with his partner, a freelancer, with whom he has two children, in a large metropolis in northern Italy. «In our city – he comments – there are hospitals of absolute excellence. But they didn’t have the ability to intercept our needs as they did in Turin. At a time that was very difficult for us ». “In our opinion – they explain to the City of Health – it is not wrong to label the AFM as the polio of the XXI century. However, there is still much to do on the road to knowledge and awareness. Access to specialist care, therapy and resources can be very limited and many families face this challenge on their own. Promoting research is essential. Surgery now opens the door to new treatment opportunities – an achievement that could mean tangible hope for many more children affected by this debilitating disease.”