This from The Observer; Written by TREVOR ARIHO, Wednesday, 28 July 2010 18:32 .
Joy and Bwine are a humble couple that loves their son Mathew Ayebare (Pictured) deeply and have done their best to take care of him. Mathew is a little over two years old and has been in and out of hospital since he was a year old.
Joy noticed that Mathew at nine months did not seem to respond or behave like her other two children. However, she did not read too much into it at the time. When he made a year, Mathew started getting seizures. When he was taken to hospital, they were told he had epilepsy and he was started on treatment. But the seizures did not stop.
The anxious young parents took Mathew back to hospital where he had a CT scan that revealed bleeding in his brain. This is when they learned that their son had a very complex and rare congenital defect known as arteriovenous malformation. An arteriovenous malformation (AVM) is when there is abnormal connectivity between arteries and veins.
www.brain-aneurysm.com says that most brain AVMs present with a brain hemorrhage (severe headache, nausea, vomiting, and collapse/loss of consciousness). Instant death rate is believed to be at about 10% for first-time hemorrhages from a brain AVM, and this is about the same as the instant mortality rate for first-time brain aneurysm ruptures. Many AVMs present with seizures, and some present with neurological symptoms (paralysis or sensory disturbance) due to the mass of the blood vessel tangle causing direct compression of brain tissue.
Joy and Bwine desperately needed a “miracle” for their son. They were referred to Dr. Hussein Ssenyonjo who agreed to perform the operation. However, it would be a very complex operation with a long stay in Intensive Care after the operation. The family could not raise money to have the surgery done and; so, they approached Hope Ward at International Hospital Kampala.
Hope Ward is a charity ward at the International Hospital Kampala that partners with various companies, organizations and individuals to provide complex medical treatment for the very needy in Uganda. Sponsors include Bead for Life, Muvule Trust, Stanbic Bank, MTN, Narrow Road, Hwan Sung, Suubi Trust, Bless a Child Foundation, IAA Health Care and the International Hospital Kampala (IHK).
Mathew was admitted to Hope Ward and had a successful surgery at IHK. His family was only asked to contribute Shs 2m out of a total of Shs 6.2m. The International Hospital covered 30% of the bill and does the same for all Hope Ward patients. The balance was covered by donations from Hope Ward supporters. Dr. Ssenyonjo waived his fee and his only concern was saving Mathew’s life.
Before surgery, Mathew had a 10% chance of living but his future is much brighter now.
| Written by TREVOR ARIHO |
| Wednesday, 28 July 2010 18:32 |
