When Stephen Bodnar was born at Mercy Health – Lorain Hospital in November 2021, his mother, Megan Friend, assumed she would be bringing her newborn son home for Thanksgiving. But Stephen’s birth was unlike those Megan had with her older children. “I delivered my older two without any problems,” Megan said. “When Stephen was born, […]
5 effective ways to prevent birth defects
January is Birth Defects Prevention Month, and Akron Children’s Hospital is spreading the word about how common birth defects are, the toll they can take on a child’s health and well-being, and how to prevent them. Facts Birth defects are conditions present at birth that may adversely affect an individual’s health by changing the body’s […]
Max’s cleft palate journey continues with success
My son, Max, was born in the middle of a November blizzard in 2008 with a bilateral cleft lip and palate. Rewind to our 20 week ultrasound, where we were excited to find out his gender but were surprised to instead learn that he had a cleft. The tech was certain about his lip but […]
Finding ‘encouragement through weariness’ of cleft lip & palate repair with NAM
Dr. Niyant Patel walked into the pre-surgical room 10 minutes early in his charcoal colored scrubs, relaxed and with a smile on his face. “How ya feeling this morning, doc?” my husband asked him. “I’m feeling great. I slept good last night. I’m here early…you ready to get started?” It was 7 a.m. and we […]
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