Rooting For Rods ~ Nathan Baume

Nathan Scott Baume was born on June 18th, 2014 with Osteogenesis Imperfecta (OI) Type 3, also known as Brittle Bone Disease. OI Type 3 is the most severe type among children who survive the neonatal period. Osteogenesis Imperfecta (OI) Type 3 is a rare disease that causes weak bones that break easily. OI can also cause many other problems such as weak muscles, brittle teeth, short stature, hearing loss, chronic pain and in some cases a shortened lifespan. At this time there is no cure for Nathan's condition.

Nathan is now three years old. Since birth he has fractured mutiple bones, mutiple times. We are unaware of the total amount of breaks as many fractures go undetected.

At the age of three, Nathan weighs in at 21 pounds and is around two feet tall. However, due to his disease, he is unable to stand or walk.

Like any three year old, Nathan wants to be standing, walking and running around. Although he is incapable of doing so at this time, we hope that he will be capable of doing so in the future. That is why Nathan will be undergoing surgery on October 10th, 2017.

Nathan will be going in for rodding surgery which involves internal "splinting" of the long bones by means of the insertion of a metal rod. Under general anesthesia, his bones will be cut in one or several places, straightened and "threaded" onto a metal rod.

Rodding is recommended to control repeated fractures of a long bone, and to improve bone deformities that interfere with function. This surgery increases the possibility of Nathan being able to stand and or walk.

Nathan will be undergoing this procedure in Calgary, Alberta at the Alberta Children's Hospital. Due to the severity of this surgery we will have to relocate to Calgary for a minimum of four weeks. This will require that I take time off of work.

We are asking for your support to help us cover our expenses while we are away. This includes hospitality, food, fuel and loss of wages.

Although we will be located in Calgary during this time, our bills and expenses will still exist in Cranbrook while we are away.

Any sort of donation to help us as we embark on this new journey will be greatly appreciated.

To find out more about Osteogensis Imperfecta go to www.oif.org

HOW YOU CAN HELP
-Share our story on social media with a personal message
-Donate what you can to this GoFundMe page
-Send prayers, positive thoughts, and good vibes for fast healing during and after surgery

Thank-you and God bless.