Born in Kenya only one month ago, baby Joy is the second child in her family. Joy’s mother brought her to our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation (AMHF), seeking treatment for spina bifida.
Spina bifida is a birth defect in which several vertebrae in the lower back do not close properly, leaving the baby’s spinal canal exposed. The spinal cord and its surrounding membranes protrude through the opening in the backbone, forming a sac on the baby’s lower back.
“Joy has a leaking mass on her lower backbone area,” explains AMHF. Because tissues and nerves in the mass are exposed, “Joy is at a risk of infection” in addition to “development of a tethered [spinal] cord that can lead to either scoliosis or kyphosis and potentially loss of muscle function in her lower limbs.” Without immediate intervention, Joy may also experience urinary and bowel incontinence.
Joy’s condition poses significant challenges for her family, as “looking after Joy requires round-the-clock care, from administering her care to ensuring Joy is hygienically clean to avoid infections that may result in fatality,” AMHF tells us. Joy’s mother, a single parent, cares not only for her two children but also for her grandmother who is ill. The money that she earns from washing clothes in the neighborhood is barely enough to support the family, let alone pay for Joy’s medical care.
For $805, surgeons will place Joy’s spinal cord and membranes back inside the spinal canal and close the opening on Joy’s back. Funding for Joy also covers the costs of a five-day hospital stay, three days of physical therapy, imaging, lab work, and medicine.
“The surgery will help prevent risk of infections, developing tethered cord, and paralysis of Joy’s legs,” says AMHF.
“My biggest joy would be to have my little princess treated and successful in future—free from any disability or illness,” shares Joy’s mother.
