CentraState - Healthy Directions

Making Strides to Recover from infection L ast year, Dawud Hamden was a vibrant young teenager playing high school soccer. One day, for no apparent reason, Dawud collapsed in school and was rushed to the hospital, unable to move and having trouble breathing. Dawud was soon diagnosed with transverse myelitis, a rare bacterial infection that affects the spinal cord. According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, about 1,400 new cases are diagnosed in the United States each year. "At first, I did not know what was going on," recalls Dawud, now 15 and a sophomore at Bordentown Regional High School. After spending 1 1/2 months in the Intensive Care Unit at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Dawud came to CentraState Medical Center for physical and occupational therapy to regain his strength, motor skills, and mobility. "I was really weak when I went in," Dawud says. "I don't think they knew how much they could do for me. As time went on, I was more determined to get back on my feet." Dawud is under the care of Todd Cooperman, MD, board-certified physical medicine and rehabilitation specialist on staff at CentraState. Physical therapist Angela Mueller has been working with Dawud for more than a year. Mueller says that in the beginning, Dawud was unable to sit without maximum support or use his lower extremities for any functional mobility. After one year of twice-a-week physical therapy, in addition to working with senior occupational therapist Gregory San Andres and getting semi-weekly physical therapy at school, Dawud is now walking out of therapy with an assistive device. "He came in with a wheelchair—he's come a tremendously long way," Mueller says. "To be honest, the goal was to get him sitting up. Now the www.centrastate.com Thanks to the rehabilitative care provided by Angela Mueller (left) and Gregory San Andres (at right), Dawud Hamden is on the path to recovery following diagnosis with transverse myelitis. March/April 2012 9 goal is to get him walking on his own." Even when Mueller and San Andres thought they had hit a plateau with Dawud's therapy, "All at once, he was standing," Mueller says. "Ever since then, he's made great strides." "At first, I wasn't sure about it," Dawud admits. "But I was pretty surprised by what I could do. I gained a little more courage." Dawud can now walk 100 feet when assisted by a person and a bilateral platform walker, but he's working toward more lofty goals. He'd love to get back on the soccer field, but he remains realistic. "It's hard for me to set goals because I don't want to let myself down," he says. "But I keep pushing." In addition to crediting his therapy team with helping him recover, Dawud credits the support and positive attitude of his family as well, although his father, Gussan Hamden, says Dawud should be most proud of himself. "My son always has a smile on his face, even with all his trouble," Gussan says. "For me, it's very hard; he inspires me. He's always smiling." For more information about pediatric physical therapy services at CentraState's Department of Rehabilitation, visit www.centrastate.com/rehab or call (732) 294-2700. HD

• Cover