Rhyl teenager Megan Bailey undergoes major spinal surgery...and just look at her now

The 14-year-old who has scoliosis and global development delay underwent an operation at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital

 

 

Megan Bailey, 14, from Rhyl can now sit up in her wheelchair thanks to skilled surgeons at Alder Hey Childrens Hospital in Liverpool

An operation to straighten a teenager’s spine has been hailed a success.

Megan Bailey from Rhyl can now sit up in her wheelchair thanks to skilled surgeons at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Liverpool.

The 14-year-old suffers from global development delay, which leaves her unable to walk or talk.

She also has scoliosis which causes the abnormal twisting and curvature of the spine.

Her curvature was so bad it left her slumped to the right.

But now, Megan is able to sit up properly in her wheelchair and looks a lot taller, according to her mum, Natalie and dad, Lee.

Natalie said: “Megan’s operation was really successful, it’s only when you look at the X-rays that you realise how badly curved her spine was and how much straighter it is now.

“The operation lasted for eight hours, and so far, she’s been in hospital for more than a week.

“It was the longest eight hours of our lives and we were so relieved to get the call from the surgeon to say everything had gone well.

“Megan is having physio every day to keep her moving and get her used to sitting up straight, and was able to be put into a chair on Tuesday.

“At the moment, she is tolerating about half an hour sat up in a chair.

“She looked very different in her chair as she always used to lean to her right but now she is upright and much taller.”

X-rays show how Megan Bailey's spine looked before and after her operation at Alder Hey Children's Hospital in Liverpool

Ysgol Tir Morfa pupil, Megan has already undergone surgery to stop her hips from dislocating.

Natalie reflected back to the time when she was pregnant with Megan and during her 20-week scan, doctors told her that the baby’s brain was not developing as it should be.

The family did not know what that would mean for their daughter until she was a few months old when they discovered she was not hitting her developmental milestones.

“Megan is globally delayed in everything she does, she is never going to get better,” Natalie said.

“She is unable to walk, sit up unaided or speak, but she communicates in her own way and we understand what she wants.

“She is also fed through a tube and is visually impaired in that she can see, but her brain does not pick up the messages from her eyes so if you put something in front of her, she will see it a few seconds later.

“We noticed this when she was a baby, I would leave the room but her eyes wouldn’t follow me.”

Megan Bailey on her swing at home in Rhyl with her mum Natalie before her operation

Last year, Prestatyn-based charity, Belief donated a sensory swing allowing Megan’s parents and 11-year-old brother, Joshua to push her for the very first time.


Source : Daily Post , 23rd Oct 2016