"Our whole family continues to be changed forever by Abby..." by Joe and Julie October, 2004 "Abby arrived on April 10, 2001 and was wonderful, although very small. Her two older brothers and older sister thought she was the best gift they had ever received. " "By the time she was 5 months old, Abby had switch primary care doctors to a pediatrician, had been seen by a urologist, had been diagnosed with bilateral ureter reflex, had been seen by a pediatric orthopedic surgeon and was diagnosed with congenital scoliosis. To top off the rounds of medical experts, she was seen by both a cardiologist and ophthalmologist. (These two specialists, thankfully, were able to give her a clean bill of health regarding heart and vision functioning. She had her first surgery at five months of age to correct her kidney/ureters and remove the risk of continued UTI's. Thanks to the constant support of family and friends, the other kids were able to carry on with their lives as before, although Abby's care was in the forefront of everyone's mind, even her two year old brother who was very aware of her safety and made sure he knew where she was at all times."
	"With Abby's kidney/ureter repair completed successfully, there was more time to concentrate on her other diagnosis of congenital scoliosis and what that would mean. We saw several orthopedic surgeons locally before we found on that was able to provide us with the answers to our questions and suggest some options for her continued care. This doctor, strongly recommended that we speak with Dr. Robert Campbell in San Antonio, Texas, because his experimental procedure of using Vertical Expandable Prosthetic Titanium Ribs (VEPTR) was the one thing that might prove to be successful in the long run for Abby." "Dr. Campbell agree to see Abby and, when she was nine months old, we flew from Denver to San Antonio for an evaluation. The "Rib Team" then diagnosed her with thoracic dysplasia and respiratory insufficiency and agreed that she would be a good candidate for the procedure. We came home feeling that there WAS something that could be done for our little girl and we proceeded to wait for 'the call.' After feeling so down at the seriousness of her diagnosis, we now had hope." "While we waited, our search led us to Dr. Kit Song in Seattle, who had just his training with Dr. Campbell and was starting his own program. Finally we had a surgery date for Abby! She was 18 months old at this point." "We live in a fairly small community, and the support of our neighbors and community had been amazing, but we were still surprised when the fire trucks from the local fire department pulled into our driveway to give our kids a private tour of the thrills of fire trucks! What a great distraction it was for the kids. They were the coolest kids in the neighborhood that day!" "Just a short time later, Abby was the proud owner of two titanium ribs. Abby had to stay in a Seattle hotel for almost two weeks after spending four days in the hospital following the surgery. We were all so excited to arrive back in Colorado and have everyone in their right places." Since we've ben back home, Abby's pediatrician, Dr. Chris Healey, has been her primary support locally and has been instrumental in her care when her have been post-surgical complications such as not being able to maintain her oxygen levels and a significant blood infection. He is very protective of her and is great about communicating with Dr. Song when necessary." "As we look toward Abby's future, we are aware that she will need two to three surgeries per year, depending on how quickly she grows, until she achieves physical maturity (at about 13-15 years of age.) This, with the prospect of continued physical and occupational therapies and many medical tests and check-ups can present a very daunting picture. We are able to maintain our hopeful outlook though, due to our team of doctors. Without these people, Abby's health care and quality of life would not be anywhere near how wonderful it is today." "Our whole family, included extended family and friends, continue to be changed forever by Abby and her blessings/challenges." Read more our our kids' stories by clicking HERE.