United Brachial Plexus Network, Inc.

Hi there. My daughter was born just a few days after yours (4/8/05) with OBPI on her right side. When she was born she could move her fingers, hand and wrist. She can now move her shoulder up and down, lift her arm to her belly, move her arm out to the side and push against our fingers. She resists most of her ROM exercises. Most of these movements occur only when she is lying down (no gravity) however; she is getting stronger and has began to move her arm a little when sitting up. She sees PT for an evaluation at ST. Louis CH every month. She has in home PT once a week and PT at the hospital one time per week. According to a BPI specialist my daughter has a minor/moderate injury and will most likely get better w/o surgery. However, he said that PT will move things along faster and easier and I have noticed a difference since we started doing it. I reccommend pushing for more. I didn't catch where you are from but if it is in the states you should call Family/child connections or otherwise known as "early intervention". Every state has it and they will provide PT and OT in your home on a sliding scale accourding to your income. These therapists knew more about BPI than the hospital near us and were a great help. Your daughter is automatically eligible due to her injury. I hope this helps.

My son born with LOBPI had a significant injury, and his doctors said it wasn't the worst or the best they've seen. However, we have done PT 3x week and OT 1x week in addition to ROM 5x day since his birth. After 2 1/2 months he started to bend at the elbow and continues to improve. He is 3 1/2 months now, and his doctors believe that all of his progress was due to an aggressive PT/OT treatment (he can reach up to his eyes now) His therapist do stretching, rom, weight bearing,rolling, arm positioning, and lots of other things to facilitate movement.(key : facilitating movement). They also use massage, and lots of toys. I definitely think you might want to pursue more therapy - it can't hurt, only help.