StemCell Therapy

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (WV News) Dr. Mary Louise Russell is a member of the team of experts at the WVU Medicine Childrens that specializes in pediatric physical medicine and rehabilitation.

She and her colleagues treat children who have movement issues due to a wide range of causes, Russell said.

Sometimes the children only have movement problems, and sometimes the movement problems are part of a more complex picture, she said. For example, children with Down syndrome can have movement problems, and they might be behind on learning to walk. But, they might have other problems, too, like developmental delay and even some other medical difficulties, like heart defects or GI problems.

She sees children of all ages, from just nine days old to beyond age 18, Russell said.

For new patients, well go all the way to 18 years. Although, for some who have had pediatric onset of chronic conditions, well see them into at least young adulthood, say mid-20s, she said. That would usually be a person with cerebral palsy.

Cerebral palsy is among the most common diagnosis she sees, Russell said.

Cerebral palsy is a problem with how the brain works that effects how somebody moves. It can be confined to the movement control part of the brain, or there may be other problems, like seizures or developmental delay, she said.

There are a variety of treatments for patients with cerebral palsy, Russell said.

The first treatment to be used is physical and occupational therapy, she said. In the United States, there is a service called Birth to Three or Early Intervention that is a federal government-supported service administered by states for kids to get in-home therapy services.

Other treatments for cerebral palsy include braces, walkers, crutches, or wheelchairs, Russell said.

Medications can be administered to reduce tone spasticity, and orthopaedic or neurosurgery can help to reduce muscle spasticity, she said. There is a variety of possible treatments that cover a range of issues.

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced her to rely on remote visits with some patients, which isnt quite the same as seeing them in person, Russell said.

I think its better than nothing, but for what I do say for a patient with cerebral palsy I really like to be able to feel how much resistance they give me when trying to stretch their arms or their legs, she said. Thats kind of a hard thing to do from a screen.

She looks forward to being able to see all of her patients in-person again in the near future, Russell said.

A lot of families right now are reluctant to bring their children for in-person visits, and I can understand. Many of these kids are medically fragile or chronically ill, she said. We just need to wait a little while longer for their in-person visits.

Russell, who has more than 30 years of medical experience, said she has seen significant leaps in what genetics can reveal about a patients condition.

What has been the biggest help to us has been advances in genetics, she said. I can remember when we would just diagnose them and say They have low muscle tone. Now, were able to identify genetic syndromes and where parts of a chromosome may be missing or duplicated.

When she was first starting out information was much more limited, Russell said.

Having genetic information helps you with set reasonable goals, she said. You may not be able to fix the underlying problem, but you know what to expect and to plan for.

Read more:
WVU Medicine Children's Dr. Mary Louise Russell brings 30-plus years experience in the treatment of children with movement issues - WV News

This entry was posted on December 26, 2020 at 1:57 pm and is filed under Genetic medicine. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed. |