Bio-wise and otherwise

Sun smiles on these kids

April 14-22nd was Sun Volunteers' week, a time for us to render service with a smile.  April 19 was the day we invited children from the Spastic society over to our  campus.

It was coincidental that both Sun and the Spastic society celebrated their 25 birthday so this turned out to be a great theme for the painting session.

                                             Pic: Kids paint   'Sun'ny side up!

 What flagged off this fun-filled day was the ice-breaker- passing the parcel. The one who was out had to say a lil' something about himself or herself. Among the enthusiastic students were dancers, singers, cricketers, basketball'ers and even computer game addicts.  Young Pooja, confined to a wheelchair watched the game with avid interest. There was one volunteer who stood steadfastly by her side to ensure that she got to hold the ball before it was passed on.

Pic: When Pooja wants to chat

Amidst all this camaraderie, I noticed Bala who is in his thirties, completely confined to a wheelchair, cannot speak coherently, goes into shaking spasms and needs assistance with most tasks.  Bala wanted to paint along with his group, judging by the gleam in his eyes. He finally drew a meandering river and gurgled with delight.

Pic: Bala draws a river

One the medical front, Cerebral Palsy (CP) refers to a group of conditions that affect control of movement and posture due to damage to one or more parts of the brain that control movement. An affected child cannot move his or her muscles normally, while symptoms range from mild to severe.  With treatment, some children improve their abilities gradually.

CP is usually diagnosed only when a child is about 2-3 years of age. In about 70% of the cases, CP results from events occuring before birth that can disrupt normal development of the brain.

In Feb 2006, the UCP Research and Educational Foundation reviewed advances in brain imaging techniques that may lead to very early detection of brain abnormalities in infants. Early detection is important for prognosis and for providing opportunities for early intervention to improve the chances of better outcome in children at risk.

At the biochemical level, proteins like the pathological Tau protein have been identified to be involved in the development of neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's disease and progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP). Mutations (small and sudden changes in the protein read-out) in the Tau gene (which codes for the Tau protein) cause a kind of dementia with Parkinsoniasm linked to Chromosome 17. Variations in gene organization can cause differnent neurodegenerative pathways leading to disease.

While biomedical research is on full swing to identify disease loci and possible cure or therapy, it is really the homes and schools that have to bring these children to a level of self-sufficiency and dignified life.

Sheeba, a young lady of 20 odd years, is all of 2 and a half feet, and confined constantly to a wheel chair. Her disability also includes a completely bald head and stunted limbs. But there is no dearth of talent. The Society has brought this latent talent out and now Sheeba makes a modest living by painting on jute bags.

Pic: Sheeba watches the merrymaking

Surely many of us felt quite proud to be involved in community service and almost wore an 'invisible ribbon' to  show off to this world. But as the day went by, we watched Hema, Bala's mother  stand patiently behind Bala's wheelchair, attending to his every need, soothing his occasional cries and whimpers, with a gentle smile on her face. 

And then we knew.

She didn't need a ribbon. She wore a halo.
 

Pic: Bala and mommy dearest

* These beautiful pictures were taken by Manu Samuel from the IEC IPG group.

Posted at 04:31AM Apr 20, 2007 by Manju in Sun  |  Comments[4]