Heal children's lives with corrective surgery

In the USA when our babies are born the first thing we do is to check and make sure that all 10 toes and fingers are present and perfect.  In Nepal sometimes baby toes and fingers are not always so perfect.  Sometimes there are more then 10 toes or fingers or too few, webbed toes or other variations of deformity can also happen.  It is not known why this happens but among the possibilities are heredity or nutritional factors, lack of pre natal care, drugs taken during pregnancy may also play a part. 

Polydactyly

Sandip a 4 year old Boy was born with an extra dgit on both feet and unable to wear proper foot protection. The thought of a child never being able to wear boots in the rain or closed shoes to keep his feet warm during the winter is very sad.  With a relatively simple surgery Sandip will no longer be faced with wearing flip-flops for the rest of his life. That is a pretty significant accomplishment for the cost of a $200 donation.

Syndactyly

Sujan 5 year old Girl was born with 2 fingers on her right hand fused together.  Sujan was reluctant to go to school because of her abnormal-looking hand. She had been the subject of ridicule among her playmates and feared that she would be treated as an outcast due to superstitions about birth defects.  Sujan came to our attention while the mobile medical team was in Biratnagar during one of our screening camps. Functionally, her condition did not handicap her but if left untreated, the longer of the two fingers would hamper the growth of the shorter finger.

Learning that her fingers could be separated and look normal made her very happy. it usually takes 18 hours of bus travel to get to Kathmandu but Sujan only had to travel 4-5 hours to get to Biratnagar.  After her surgery in Biratnagar she is now in school and playing with her friends and enjoying life with her family. Instead of a life of isolation and limited opportunities she now has a promising future.

During this past year 80 surgeries were completed with thirty precent of these surgeries were performed at Kitipur Cleft & Burn Center  and 70% were performed by the mobile surgical team in13 rural outreach camps in Butwal, Nepalgang, Biratnagarr, Pokhara, and Suket.

* Names have been changed to protect privacy of patient.

Niru is a 3 year old girl that lost her part of her nose when she was only 1 week old.  Her parents had left her alone in the house during the day and upon returning found Niru bleeding and her nose partially gone.  It is believed that a rat ate her nose while unattended.  A post op picture of Niru's new nose on her smiling face will be sent in my next report.

It's not unusual for small infants to be left alone or under the care of a toddler while the parents are working in the field.  In high mountain areas and situations such as this, children under five are at very high risk for injury and burn.

Sahyata, a nonprofit organization from the SF Bay Area has been instrumental in identifying and referring children in need of corrective surgery to CMAF.  Niru, who lives in Humla close to the Tibetan border would have never been helped if not for Sahyata.  Sahyata will cover the cost of travel and CMAF will provide surgery, post op care and temporary housing.     It is very rewarding for everyone when nonprofits work together to benefit those in need.

(Niru is a fictional name)

Kirtipur Cleft & Burn Center (KCBC), where our sponsored children receive care, is in a suburb of Kathmandu.  It survived the earthquake unlike many other hospitals.  KCBC does not turn anyone away due to cast, religion or inability to pay Today all hospital beds are filled, ICU is full, 3 ventilators are in use and patients are waiting for surgery.  This is indeed a strain on management of hospital supplies hospital and a challange for staff and doctors.  I am very happy to report that the hospital cafeteria has been able to keep up with the demand to provide nutritious meals for staff and patients.  Thank you for your donations that have provided corrective surgery for Nepali children.  You  have been instrumental in supporting the work of Kirtipur Cleft & Burn Center.  Looking forward to your continued prayers and support.

His only son out of 5 children, with burn contracture,

Humla for a wk . While in Humla I met a 4 yr old with burn contractures on
>> left foot as a result of a burn when he was 6 mo old. I was hoping to
>> connect his family and him with the burn contracture reconstructive
>> surgery  program  

I just returned from Nepal 2 days ago. I was in
>> Humla for a wk . While in Humla I met a 4 yr old with burn contractures on
>> left foot as a result of a burn when he was 6 mo old. I was hoping to
>> connect his family and him with the burn contracture reconstructive
>> surgery  program at Model Hospital. He may benefit from reconstructive and
>> plastic surgery and perhaps physical therapy. Family is very poor and I
>> would be happy to raise funds for the travel from Humla to Kathmandu. I am
>> hoping that the team in Kathmandu can evaluate him to prevent further
>> debilitation.