Tuesday, September 25, 2007

Lending a Hand

Harlingen doctor helps creates prosthetic arm for 7-year-old boy
By DAISY MARTINEZ—Valley Morning Star
September 23, 2007 - 10:37PM
HARLINGEN — Gildardo Guzman is like most other 7-year-old boys: he likes to swim, play video games and play with his older brother Carlos.
If it weren’t for the physical aspect, no one would ever be able to tell that he battled osteosarcoma, a type of bone cancer, just a year ago.
Gildardo won the battle against cancer, but in the process lost his left arm and shoulder. Doctors re-moved the limb and joint because they feared that the cancer would spread.
But Gildardo’s bubbly personality and big, bright smile divert attention from the left side of his body.
“I used to feel bad because my arm hurt all the time, but not anymore,” Gildardo said in Spanish. “I feel better now, because I don’t have pain anymore.”
Gildardo’s mother, Nancy Guzman, said that learning that her son had cancer was absolutely devastat-ing.
“But the strongest one through all of this has been Gildardo,” Nancy Guzman said in Spanish. “When he came out of surgery, when they had just removed his arm, he told me not to cry. He said that if he wasn’t crying, why should I be crying.”
Now that it has been more than a year since Gildardo’s arm was removed, he has hope of having an arm again.
The Guzman family lives in McAllen and said they searched the Rio Grande Valley for the best possi-ble prosthetic arm, the cost of which will be paid by Medicaid.
That’s how they ended up in Doug Wacker’s office.
Wacker, certified prosthetist/orthotist and Texas-licensed prosthetist/orthotist, owns Nutech Orthotics & Prosthetics in Harlingen. He said that in more than 27 years of practice in Houston at the Texas Medi-cal Center, he’s never seen a case like Gildardo’s.
Wacker has been working to create a “passive arm” for Gildardo, which will serve cosmetic purposes.
But the work hasn’t been easy, Wacker said.
“No other 7-year-old has ever had one,” Wacker said about Gildardo’s prosthetic.
Wacker said he’s called all over the nation, Canada and even Germany looking for the parts needed to make a prosthetic arm to fit Gildardo.
Liberating Technologies, Inc. of Holliston, Mass., custom-made the parts that Wacker needed to make the prosthetic for Gildardo. The prosthetic arm weighs about 4 pounds and is something to which Gildardo must become accus-tomed, Wacker said.
“(The prosthetic arm) will be difficult getting used to because his center of gravity has changed,” Wacker said. “We’ll see how he does with this. I’m hoping that in the future he’ll be able to get a myoelec-tric prosthesis (with which) he’ll be able to control his elbow and hand through nerve impulses.”
Wacker expects that Gildardo will use this prosthetic arm for about a year before exploring the possi-bilities of a more sophisticated one.
“This is a great feeling,” Wacker said about helping Gildardo. “This is what lets you sleep at night.”












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Thursday, September 20, 2007

RUNNING AMPUTEES!


Visit You Tube for pages and pages of Running Amputees!
A GREAT INSPIRATION to all!

Setting his own pace

Sacramentan Jon Bik heads to Germany to compete in Triathlon World Championships -- 2 1/2 years after losing a leg
By M.S. Enkoji - Bee Staff Writer
Published 12:00 am PDT Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Story appeared in METRO section, Page B1

He was on top of the world, a new job just within his grasp, when something gave way, plunging him toward what could have been a life of self-pity and bitterness.

Or not.

After Jon Bik lost most of his right leg in a work accident, he got up from his hospital bed, determined to rebound, first by golfing, then by running and finally, training for triathlons.

"I think it was the threat of not being able to do it that made me do it," said Bik, 33.

Just 2 1/2 years after losing his leg, Bik is bound for Hamburg, Germany, today to compete in the Triathlon World Championships.

Some seek solace in therapy, but Bik has channeled any darkness that came his way into training and concentrating on what milestone was next.

"It's definitely helped to take my mind off things," he said.

Bik spent Tuesday showing off the high-technology prosthetic legs that will help him through nearly a one-mile swim, 24.8 mile bike ride and a 6.2-mile run.

He is shooting for a three-hour finish or less in Hamburg. He qualified for the world event at a New York City triathlon in July, coming in at three hours and 17 minutes. At least 8,000 athletes from around the world will compete in Hamburg. Bik will square off against others who also use prosthetic legs.

Because of the expense, Bik will travel without the relatives, friends and co-workers who have rallied for his comeback.

"He makes my simple life problems seem very little if you look at his accomplishments," said Ken Habel, who works with Bik at the Sacramento Municipal Utility District. Habel has helped raise money to defray Bik's racing costs. It will cost Bik $600 just to bag and ship his bike to Germany.

Habel and Bik have been working together for a few years, training as meter technicians for the utility district.

Bik initially wanted to be a lineman, scaling utility poles to do repairs. He went to "pole school" at the utility district during a vacation break from a former job. The physically grueling school typically weeds out most candidates, he said. But not him.

"I just finished the final test," he said, recalling the day he was injured in January 2005.

A spike on his boot caught wrong on a wooden pole as he shimmied down it. He dropped 40 feet, landing with a leg somehow skewed upward in front of him.

For three days, doctors worked to save his leg, which was attached mostly by skin, Bik said. He lost the leg above the knee.

Before the accident, the father of 6- and 2-year-old girls, owned a bike and had run in a few fun runs.

"I wasn't lying in bed thinking of triathlons," he said.

But he was thinking of getting his life back. Golfing would be his bridge to running again, he figured. After he started running, Bik took up biking and swimming as a way to rest from running.

Getting fitted for prosthetics was a process of trial and error. Blisters and another surgery, plagued him.

"No matter what," Habel said, "he always remained positive. He didn't let the setbacks get to him regardless of how it impacted him. He always pushed forward."

The prosthetics Bik will take to Germany -- made by Hanger Prosthetics and Orthotics -- each are designed for a particular activity and imbedded with microprocessors that control flexibility and stability.

Joining other runners Tuesday at McKinley Park in east Sacramento, Bik ran a few rounds himself.

After he retires from marathoning and triathaloning, he says, he'd like to work in some way to help others deal with physical disabilities.

About the writer:
The Bee's M.S. Enkoji can be reached at (916) 321-1106 or menkoji@sacbee.com.

CAPO - Canadian Association for Prosthetics and Orthotics

The Canadian Association for Prothetics and Orthotics (CAPO) is a non-profit, volunteer organization representing more than 350 profession's in the fields of prosthetics and orthotics across Canada.

'Hall' of an inspiration

Sunday, September 02, 2007

He lost a leg in the Real IRA Omagh bomb but superactive Ali Hall leads an inspirational life. Pauline Reynolds reports

He's completed a gruelling triathlon in three hours 45 minutes and has a burning ambition to climb Ben Nevis.

He loves to keep active and counts hill walking, cycling and tennis among his hobbies.

Nothing is too great a challenge for Ali Hall - despite having lost part of his right leg in the Omagh bomb.

And he's just returned from a two-week trip to Vietnam to witness for himself how less privileged amputees cope.

Life is good for the 21-year-old university student who has decided to use his disability to his advantage.

He plans to pursue a career in prosthetics and orthotics, having been encouraged by the revolutionary work at Belfast's Musgrave Park hospital centre of excellence.

It was there Ali began his road to rehabilitation.

"When I was younger and getting my limbs fitted, I was always asking questions and became really interested in what was going on," he recalled.

"Then, in lower sixth, I was able to do my work experience in Musgrave Park and got to see the kind of things that went on behind the scenes.

"It was fascinating and I probably wouldn't have chosen this career path if it hadn't been for my injury."

As part of his course at Strathclyde University, he and a group of fellow students visited Vietnam in July.

The war between 1959 and 1975 is believed to have left around 20pc of the population as amputee casualties.

Ali found the experience educational and humbling.

"We visited schools and clinics where a lot of children were born without limbs and with other deformities," he explained.

"Chemicals used during the war have meant that generations of Vietnamese suffer from genetic abnormalities.

"There were landmine victims and also people who had lost limbs through road traffic accidents.

"I was able to relate to the young people over there, but it's sad to see that they're not really integrated back into society.

"Artificial limbs are so expensive that few can afford them.

"I remember a little lad coming up to me in the street to tell me his uncle, who was only about 30, had both his legs blown off in a landmine.

"He said he had never been fitted with artificial limbs and who knows if he ever will.

"I learned a lot about how much money our health service gives to helping amputees and realised how lucky I was to have the medical expertise we have here.

"I was shocked at what I saw."

The lack of progress in treating children with limb deformities was brought home during a visit to one school.

With the best of intentions, only limited help can be given because of a lack of funding and proper training.

"There were small children with their mothers, who were being taught physiotherapy," he said.

"It was really moving to see so many kiddies, who have to go through so much, being given so little.

"They didn't even cry or complain, although it was a very difficult time for them. Many couldn't walk or get around.

"What a contrast to the amazing progress that has been made here in Northern Ireland."

The trip made a huge impact on Ali.

"Since I've been home I've been thinking more about my experience in Vietnam," he revealed.

"I now feel that when I qualify I'll consider taking my skills to deprived countries which have the greatest need.

"A course - similar to the one I'm studying - has opened up in a school in Hanoi and it's doing a lot of good work.

"There are also outreach programmes for adults and children, but what's really needed is for more qualified people out there."

To help finance the trip Ali and his colleagues embarked on the triathlon (1.5km swim, 40km cycle and 10km run).

He added: "It was pretty tough going, but you can't let anything hold you back.

"There's always a way of getting around any obstacle.

"I'd love to expand my hill walking. Ben Nevis would be a good one to tackle and I should be able to do that in a few years.

"There's nothing to gain by looking back. I've achieved everything I've ever wanted."

A day of devastation
Ali Hall was one of six victims of the Omagh bomb who lost limbs in the blast.

What had begun as a trip out shopping with mum Gwen ended in a day of carnage and destruction.

The no-warning Real IRA explosion in Market Street on August 15, 1998 killed 31 people including unborn twins and left 370 injured.

Ali and Gwen were just yards from the car bomb when it went off.

On the first anniversary of the bomb, Sunday Life caught up with the then 13-year-old and his parents on a holiday in Castlerock.

Already he had nurtured that positive attitude and optimistic outlook he holds true to this day.

"There's no point worrying. No one can turn back time. You just accept it and get on with your life," said the carefree teenager at the time.

Ali told of how he remembered lying on the ground, feeling debris and rubble piled up on top of him.

"I tried to crawl away and then tried to get up, but I couldn't and I knew something was wrong with my leg," he recalled.

"I called for help and a man carried me into Slevins chemist and then I was carried into an ambulance."

He added: "I was frightened, confused and wasn't sure what had happened. "

Ali didn't realise that his right foot had been severed.

Doctors advised that amputation below the knee would give him the greatest chance to rebuild his future.

This exceptional youngster struggled through many gruelling hours of therapy to get his life back to normal.

Recovery was painful and hard to endure, but Ali rarely complained, even when further surgery was needed after his wound became infected.

One of the most difficult obstacles was to learn to walk again with the help of an artificial limb.

But like everything else he's achieved, Ali embraced the challenge with enthusiasm and steely determination.

Nowadays he lives life to the full.

JPO Online Library



Are you up for a good read about orthotics and prosthetics; then visit The JPO Online Library.

Prosthetics And Orthotics Community

Stop by and visit the Prosthetics And Orthotics Community blog; it is packed with alot of articules on the O&P Industry!

Southern Sudan: Twice a survivor of war


Southern Sudan: Twice a survivor of war
Although the conflict between the southern and the northern regions of Sudan ended in 2005, many of its victims are still striving to rebuild their lives. Mayon Deng, 42, joined the Sudanese army in 1984 and was dismissed in 1996 when he lost his left leg in combat. In November 2006, an attack in Malakal resulted in the amputation of his remaining leg. The ICRC's communication delegate in Juba, Robin Waudo, tells Mayon's story.
To read this story visit: Relief Web
Also for addition stories on this subject visit

Herr wins $250,000 Heinz Award

Professor Hugh Herr, a double amputee whose work has led to the development of new prosthetic innovations that merge body and machine, has won the 13th annual Heinz Award for Technology, the Economy and Employment. The award is among the largest individual achievement prizes in the world. Herr, of the Media Lab, was recognized for “breakthrough innovations in prosthetics and orthotics.” He is among six distinguished Americans to receive one of the $250,000 awards presented in five categories by the Heinz Family Foundation.

…At age 17, Herr lost both legs below the knee in a mountain climbing accident, but returned to the classroom after a few years to earn an undergraduate degree in physics, a master’s degree in mechanical engineering from MIT and a Ph.D. in biophysics from Harvard. Today, his work at the Media Lab focuses on human amplification and rehabilitation systems - technologies that interact with human limbs, mimicking biological performance and amplifying function. Herr predicts that in 5 to 10 years, leg amputees will be able to run faster and move with a lower metabolic rate than people with biological limbs.

Related: The Heinz Award for Technology, Economy and Employment - 2007 Draper Prize to Berners-Lee - Millennium Technology Prize to Dr. Shuji Nakamura

Read The Full Article: http://engineering.curiouscatblog.net/2007/09/13/herr-wins-250000-heinz-award/

post from Curious Cat Science and Engineering Blog on 13 September 2007 09:44:00 AM. © Curious Cat Science and Engineering Blog

Athletics: Counting Down To The 30th Anniversary Lasalle Bank Chicago Marathon

30 Inspiring Stories in 30 Days

A lifelong runner, Amy Palmiero-Winters’ life changed after a 1994 motorcycle accident resulted in the loss of her leg below the knee. Amy’s running spirit never failed and she looks to follow-up her 2006 LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon performance that set a new female amputee world record with a potential qualifying time for the U.S. Olympic Trials.

WHO: Amy Palmiero-Winters
AGE: 35
OCCUPATION: Welder
HOMETOWN: Meadville, Pennsylvania
MARATHONS: Cleveland, Boston, The LaSalle Bank Chicago, Lake Placid

RUNNER STORY: Amy Palmiero-Winters has the ability to make great athletes appear mediocre. In high school she was an outstanding competitor in swimming and track. She was faced with a major obstacle in 1994 when she was injured in a brutal motorcycle accident. Along with the scrapes and bruises, her left foot was fatally damaged in the ordeal. After three years and 25 surgeries, her physicians concluded that her leg below the knee would need to be amputated. She would struggle to get her life back in order, learning to walk with a prosthetic leg.

Three years passed as Amy learned how to maneuver with her prosthetic leg. It was designed for walking as she was never expected to be able to run well enough to need anything more. A lifelong athlete, Amy was not about to let this road block prevent her from running. In 2005 with her walking prosthetic, a five- month pregnancy, and the odds against her, Amy entered the Silver Strand Marathon in California. She surprisingly finished second in her division. With this enormous accomplishment under her belt, she was motivated to increase the level of physical difficulty and enter a triathlon in New York City. This time she took third place in her division with her walking prosthetic and a bike on loan from her boss.

Her ability to compete in exceptionally challenging races drove her to the next level. If she wanted to improve her success she needed to find better tools. She researched her options and decided that Erik Schaffer offered the best opportunity as president of A Step Ahead Prosthetics & Orthotics in Long Island, N.Y. A Step Ahead is known for working with athletes to develop training and equipment to accompany their wishes to compete in sports. She worked with their physical therapists and prosthetists to prepare for her next race. Securing a prosthetic designed for running was the first step in the right direction.

In 2006, Amy entered The LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon with two barely healed, broken toes and a two-day old discharge from the hospital where she had been admitted for anaphylactic shock. She finished in 3:04:16; setting a new world record for a female below-the-knee amputee. Her new personal record shaved 12 minutes off her previous time - certainly a remarkable accomplishment for any athlete, but it becomes an outstanding conquest considering her previous time was set at the Boston Marathon prior to the amputation!

Amy can also add her ability to competitively race against able-bodied opponents to her resume. She has placed 1st overall in two 5K and one 10K races. Her phenomenal performances earned her a nomination for the 2007 ESPY Awards for best female athlete with a disability. This October, Amy will return to The LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon with an even loftier goal. She is striving not only to post a new personal best by lowering her finish time below three hours, but to qualify for the U.S. Olympic Trials, a feat many able-bodied athletes only dream of achieving.

WEBSITE: www.seeamyrun.com

RACE INFORMATION: The LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon will celebrate its 30th anniversary on Sunday, October 7, 2007 as 45,000 participants advance to the start line, embarking on the culmination of 45,000 personal journeys. Along with the massive field of recreational runners, the 26.2-mile course will welcome a full field of world renowned professional athletes drawn to the flat, fast, urban setting and the potential to break world and national records. The professionals will compete for prize money and points in the World Marathon Majors series which will crown its first male and female champions with $500,000 each at the close of 2007. Since the inception of its charity program in 2002, The LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon has generated more than $27.5 million for a variety of charitable causes including $9.5 million in the 2006 event alone. Registration for the race opened on January 1, 2007 and closed when it reached capacity on April 18.

Linda’s story and all previously released runner stories are available at ChicagoMarathon.com.

Wednesday, September 19, 2007

Reaching for recovery



Doctor helps boy who lost arm to cancer prepare for the future

September 18, 2007 - 1:05AM
Valley Morning Star

HARLINGEN — Gildardo Guzman is like most other 7-year-old boys: He likes to swim, play video games and play with his older brother Carlos.
If it weren’t for the physical aspect, no one would ever be able to tell that he battled osteosarcoma, a type of bone cancer, just a year ago.
Gildardo won the battle against cancer, but in the process lost his left arm and shoulder. Doctors removed the limb and joint because they feared the cancer would spread.
But Gildardo’s bubbly personality and big, bright smile divert attention from the left side of his body.
“I used to feel bad because my arm hurt all the time, but not anymore,” he said in Spanish. “I feel better now, because I don’t have pain anymore.”
Gildardo’s mother, Nancy Guzman, said learning her son had cancer was absolutely devastating.
“But the strongest one through all of this has been Gildardo,” she said in Spanish. “When he came out of surgery, when they had just removed his arm, he told me not to cry. He said that if he wasn’t crying, why should I be crying.”
Gildardo said he hasn’t stopped doing the things he did before he lost his arm — even playing his favorite video game, Zelda.
He uses his right hand and left foot to operate the game controller. And he said it only took him one day to learn how to do that.
Now that it has been more than a year since Gildardo’s arm was removed, he has hope of having an arm again.
The Guzman family lives in McAllen and said they searched the Rio Grande Valley for the best possible prosthetic arm, the cost of which will be paid by Medicaid.
That’s how they ended up in Doug Wacker’s office.
Wacker, a prosthetist/orthotist, owns Nutech Orthotics & Prosthetics in Harlingen. He said that in more than 27 years of practice in Houston at the Texas Medical Center, he has never seen a case like Gildardo’s.
Wacker has been working to create a “passive arm” for Gildardo, which will serve cosmetic purposes. But the work hasn’t been easy, Wacker said.
“No other 7-year-old has ever had one,” he said about Gildardo’s prosthesis. Wacker said he has called all over the nation, Canada and even Germany looking for the parts needed to make a prosthetic arm to fit Gildardo. Liberating Technologies Inc., of Holliston, Mass., custom-made the parts that Wacker needed to make the prosthesis for Gildardo. The artificial arm weighs about 4 pounds and is something to which Gildardo must become accustomed, Wacker said. “(The prosthetic arm) will be difficult getting used to because his center of gravity has changed,” Wacker said. “We’ll see how he does with this. I’m hoping that in the future he’ll be able to get a myoelectric prosthesis (with which) he’ll be able to control his elbow and hand through nerve impulses.”
Wacker expects Gildardo will use this prosthetic arm for about a year before exploring the possibilities of a more sophisticated one. Although Wacker is still making some adjustments to Gildardo’s initial prosthesis, the youngster could get the artificial appendage in as little as two weeks.
“This is a great feeling,” Wacker said about helping Gildardo. “This is what lets you sleep at night.”
The fitting for the prosthesis reminded Nancy Guzman that Gildardo and the whole family will have to go through a long process as he progresses to more sophisticated and functional prostheses.
“This won’t be the last step,” she said. “He’s going to have to adapt from one thing to the other and go from something simple to something more sophisticated. I know my expectations are big, but I’ve already seen that bionic arms and even human arm transplants are being done.”
Gildardo said he likes his prosthesis, because learning to control it and live with it once he takes it home will be like learning how to play a game.
“I don’t feel the same, but better,” Gildardo said as he left Wacker’s office.

Tech Tuesday — Bionic technology makes for a good fit



Originally published September 18, 2007
By Pamela Rigaux News-Post Staff
Photo by Skip Lawrence
Gettysburg resident Paul Selmer is a little lighter on his feet, and not because he lost weight.

In fact, the 6 foot, 200 pound pilot has gained a little, but feels lighter after being fitted two months ago with a high-tech prosthetic foot.

Unlike other prostheses, the PROPRIO Foot, by Ossur America and Dynastream Innovations of Canada, is "intelligent" -- it detects where the limb is in space, according to the Bionic Technology by Ossur America website, www.ossur.com/bionics.

That spatial sense is known as "artificial proprioception," hence its name: PROPRIO Foot.

"I have never walked with a smoother gait," Selmer, a 30-year amputee, said. "I don't feel it.
The foot self-adjusts to an incline or decline. I never realized what a difference it made."

The PROPRIO has an on and off switch, he said. "You flip a button to turn on the gyro that's built in it. Same thing in airplanes. It knows which way is up."

Over the last three decades, Selmer was resigned to feeling pressure on his upper leg when he walked. He never imagined it could be different.

The "hip hike," pain, as it is called, is corrected by the PROPRIO's more symmetrical and balanced gait, according to Ossur's website. Bionic technology is a fusion of electronics, mechanics and human physiology.

Selmer's Gettysburg practitioner, Jeffrey Brandt, of Ability Prosthetics & Orthotics Inc., told him about the product. Selmer readily agreed to try it.

"Jeff had a meeting with the manufacturers," Selmer said. "They came out to show what it could do."

The prosthetic cost $20,000, the equivalent of two small aircrafts. Even so, Selmer put down the money.

"That's a good price for a foot," he said.

He plans to ask if insurance will reimburse some of it.

Brandt believes Selmer is the first client in Northern Maryland and Pennsylvania to get a PROPRIO. The foot was released to the public this summer, according to a press release from Ability Prosthetics & Orthotic Inc. Prior to that, it had been used only by veterans.

Selmer might also become the first pilot to use a PROPRIO. He is working on a way to fly with it. The limb he has been using isn't as flexible.

"I haven't experimented to see if the PROPRIO will better work for me," Selmer said. "When you get in a car, you're supposed to turn it off. It extends to the floor."

Hitting an accelerator wouldn't be ideal on land or air, he said.

"We're going to make (the PROPRIO) work; one of those Yankee ingenuity things," Selmer said.
At least one thing is for sure -- Selmer can use the PROPRIO for his daily work as owner of Gettysburg Frame Shop & Gallery, a Civil War art gallery on Chambersburg Street.
Brandt said Selmer has been easy to work with.

"He knows how to describe, very accurately, what he is feeling in his prosthetic socket and at his ankle. The most amazing thing was to see Paul walking up and down hills without leaning forward or backwards to re-distribute his weight and thus keep his balance."

Tuesday, September 18, 2007

Injured hound's back on track in Grindstone


By Barbara Hollenbaugh
FOR THE TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Sunday, September 16, 2007
Ron and Pat Russin of Grindstone were proud of their 3-month-old bloodhound puppy, Hector. He promised to be a fine natural tracker.

But on the evening of Jan. 19, 2006, Hector was left for dead in a hit-and-run accident. The dog's recovery would spawn a union between human and veterinary medical technology.

"I was taking some groceries from my car into the house," Ron Russin said. "I let Hector out into the yard. He went down over the hill to the road. He didn't come back, so I went looking for him. That's when I found him in the road.

"I moved him to the bank alongside the road. I got a wheelbarrow and took him to the house, then hollered for my wife."
Pat Russin immediately began to phone every veterinarian in the area, trying to find one whose office was still open.

Finally, at nearly 10 p.m., the Russins got through to Donald Tummons in Uniontown. The Russins said they were prepared to have Hector euthanized, if necessary.

Tummons' immediate concern was for Hector's front legs, which had taken the brunt of the impact. Upon examining Hector, he concluded the dog had only partial paralysis in his legs; there was hope that Hector would regain nerve function.

"Hector had been rolled during the accident," Tummons said. "That caused him to hyperextend his front legs, which caused bilateral paralysis in his front legs."

Although Hector sustained no other serious injuries, Tummons still was concerned for his long-term quality of life.

"Dogs can do well on three legs; they don't function so well on just two legs," he said.
The Russins visited Hector every day during his nearly weeklong stay in the animal hospital.
"We helped change his bandages," Pat Russin said. "We also gave him physical therapy; we massaged his legs and stretched them to keep them supple."

Many people throughout the community heard of Hector's accident, and they raised funds to pay for his care. Hector made weekly visits to Tummon's office for several months after the accident.

In the meantime, the Russins tried to track down the vehicle that had struck their dog. Pat Russin wrote a letter to the editor of the local paper, hoping that somebody would come forward with information about the accident.

"All I got in reply was an anonymous letter, sent directly to my home," she said. "I think it was a guilt trip from the person who did it."

Ron Russin queried his neighbors, hoping that somebody could give an eyewitness account of the incident.

"Nobody seen nothing. Nobody heard nothing," he said.

Once Hector had been stabilized, Tummons and the Russins focused on helping the dog regain his mobility. At first, Tummons used a creeper, which mechanics use when they work underneath vehicles, to help Hector move around.

A local resident fixed a baby carriage to give Hector some more mobility.

In August 2006, Tummons suggested giving Hector's legs support while still allowing him to move. He contacted Anatomical Designs in Uniontown, and prosthetics designer Brad Scott agreed to take on the assignment.

"Hector's problem was that his paralysis caused his paws to curl under, so that he was walking on his ankles," Scott said. "He was developing sores. He had many of the same problems that humans have when their legs are paralyzed."

After much trial and error and many fitting sessions, Scott developed a set of orthotics that would work for his canine patient. To make the orthotics, Scott made a cast of Hector's legs, then used the casts to make solid molds of plaster. Afterward, he took the mold and added more plaster to ease the pressure onspecific areas of Hector's legs.

Finally, Scott poured molten plastic over the casts, then finished them by adding some padding and straps.

He said making the orthotics was a learning experience.

"I had never made orthotics for a dog before," Scott said. "I had to learn my animal physiology."
The orthotics helped to stabilize Hector's legs and will prevent him from getting sores.

"If he had continued like he was, his sores would have become infected and his legs would have had to be amputated," Scott said. "I wanted Hector to run and play and just be a dog."

Today, Hector is a happy, 2-year-old bloodhound. He has adjusted well to his orthotics, which relieved the pressure on his legs and allowed his sores to heal. These days, he hardly needs them.

"Hector loves to play ball. I can't keep up with him," Ron Russin said.

The dog has regained motion in his right leg, but his left paw remains paralyzed. Hector also has some slight unevenness in his legs.

Still, Tummons is pleased with Hector's recovery. "He has adapted amazingly well," he said.
Scott recently had another canine client, from north of Pittsburgh.

"The ligaments in this dog's rear left leg had snapped, so effectively that leg had been detached from the body," he said. "My vet referred me to the family, because she knew that I had designed orthotics for Hector.

"Because I'd worked with Hector, I was able to design a brace that would give this dog's leg the support that it needed while it healed."

Scott said the dog is doing well.