PT started

Hi everyone! It has been a while since our last post...we have been busy busy busy and only now finally got some time to post a status of Diego's treatments.

We have setup his physical therapy and started meeting with Cindy Lewis a Senior Physical Therapist associated with the Children's Hospital of Austin. She is the same PT who saw Diego while in NICU on his first week of life.

During our first visit in her outpatient rehabilitation office, Cindy completed a mobility assessment which result was pretty good if compared to the first assessment conducted while in NICU. Diego's ROM (Range Of Motion) has improved although still a lot of work is required. He responded well and tolerated much better the motor development activities that Cindy put him through.

She gave us some instructions on how to help Diego with the stretching of his back and his continue development/learning of alternative prone positions. Arm exercises, including shoulder flexion/rotation, elbow and wrist flexion/extension are also a daily routine that we need to continue to do.

We have discussed the opportunity to start treatment of Diego's hands via splinting; Cindy will consult with Dr. Prince (Diego's orthopedic) and a couple of OT's to determine if splinting is an option at this early age (Diego is 3 weeks and 2 days old!).

Tomorrow morning we have an appointment with Dr. Immken (Genetics) and Friday we will see Dr. Prince again for a new cast. During our last visit we have shared the concern for atrophy of Diego's right leg's muscle due to the re-casting procedures. Dr. Prince suggested to have an ultrasound of the knee to evaluate if casting has been producing good results - if not, we will stop casting and re-evaluate for an alternative approach such as surgery or splinting. We have an ultrasound appointment scheduled for next Wednesday at the Children's Hospital.
Our next PT appointment is next Tuesday - for now, Diego will work with Cindy once a week but we will increase the number of PT visits per week in the future if necessary.

I want to thank the many people who wrote us during the past week; both Joseph and I have been overwhelmed by the kindness and support shared by family, friends and co-workers - even people we barely know have sent us offers for help and words of encouragement. Thank You!