Halfway through her pregnancy, Christine Cunningham received a difficult diagnosis. Her 20-week ultrasound revealed a cephalocele in her infant daughter’s skull, a rare defect where the neural tube does not close properly during gestation, leaving part of the brain exposed. Follow-up scans showed another rare disorder — agenesis of corpus callosum — an abnormality where […]
Living with a rare disease, Kate Johnson finds her passion for patient care
As a child, Kate Johnson experienced an array of symptoms, from difficulty breathing to dexterity and mobility issues, and her providers struggled to find a diagnosis. “It was frustrating,” she said. “Having a rare disease so young is very difficult in many ways. People may not believe someone so young, when it comes to something […]
New inclusive playground gives all children an opportunity to join the fun
On a recent summer day, physical therapist Charles Miller took one of his day rehabilitation patients to Akron Children’s newly opened, inclusive playground for a therapy session. To the child, it felt like playtime, but to Charles it was a valuable and objective way for him to assess his patient’s level of independence and functional […]