Hee is an energetic nine year old girl from Cambodia who loves to sing and dance. Last October, while playing in a tree outside of her house, she fell and broke her wrist. Hee visited a local healer who put her in a bamboo splint to treat the injury. Physicians at the Children’s Surgical Center think that the splint was too tight, because the muscle tissue surrounding Hee’s injury died.
Hee’s specific condition is called a “Volkmann’s Contracture.” It is defined as a permanent flexion contracture (shortening of the muscle) of the hand at the wrist, which results in a claw-like deformity of the hand and fingers. Because of this Hee cannot write and perform everyday tasks. It certainly makes dancing more difficult.
Hee, who lives with her brother and is cared for by family friends, needs surgery to treat this condition. If the surgery is successful she should regain function of her hand and ideally be able to do everything she could do before the injury.