I just wanted to share a quick update after our visit to St. Louis last week. We had a consult with Dr. TS Park at St. Louis Children’s hospital to discuss the possibility of Selective Dorsal Rhizotomy (SDR) for Gage. SDR is a procedure to reduce the spasticity (muscle tightness) in patients with cerebral palsy. For now, Dr. Park did not think Gage is a good candidate for the surgery, but asked us to come back in another 6 months to reassess things, and possibly explore orthopedic surgery options with another doctor there. So that’s our game plan for now.
I was relieved after the appointment for a couple reasons. One being that we have a clear next step, without being faced with an agonizing choice of whether or not to pursue surgery, at least for now. But if we are faced with that choice down the road, I also feel reassured that Dr. Park would not push us toward surgery unless he truly feels like it will help Gage have a better quality of life.