Jaelyn's fight with AFM

Jaelyn Hinojosa was born on May 16, 2010.She was born premature weighing only 5Lbs. Jaelyn was a healthy and happy little girl for a long time until October 20, 2016 when she was taken to the hospital for a fever and flu-like symptoms where upon arrival Jaelyn was diagnosed with the flu. On October 21st, 2016 Jaelyn developed severe headaches, as well as extreme pain in her neck and arms. Due to her recent flu diagnosis, we thought it might body aches resulting from the flu. However on October 22nd Jaelyn woke up with excruciating pain. Her neck, right arm and right leg were paralyzed. Jaelyn was rushed to the hospital and was promptly admitted to the ICU. Shortly after we were told that whatever was wrong was affecting her breathing and bladder functions drastically. Jaelyn's family went days without knowledge of what exactly was wrong with her. After a few days of multiple tests and lots of worrying her family was told that Jaelyn had AFM (Acute Flaccid Myelitis​) also known as Polio-like-virus. Not much is known of AMF, because it is rare, however we do know know that Acute flaccid myelitis (AFM) is a rare illness that anyone can get. Acute flaccid myelitis (AFM) is a condition that affects the nervous system, specifically the spinal cord, which can result from a variety of causes including viral infections. AFM is characterized by a sudden weakness in one or more arms or legs, along with loss of muscle tone and decreased or absent reflexes. Numbness or other physical symptoms are rare, although some patients may have pain in their arms or legs. In some cases, dysfunction of the nerves controlling the head and neck, resulting in such features as facial weakness, difficulty swallowing, or drooping of the eyes, may accompany the limb weakness. It affects a person’s nervous system, specifically the spinal cord.
There is no specific treatment for Acute Flaccid Myelitis, but a doctor who specializes in treating brain and spinal cord issues may recommend certain interventions on a case-by-case basis. Thanks to Jaelyn's doctor she started to make some recovery and was shortly moved to "Our Children's House" for further care. Our Children’s House offers an array of coordinated, comprehensive services for children with special health care needs. The program brings together a licensed pediatric hospital together with nine outpatient clinics.The hospital focuses on children from infancy through age 18 with developmental or birth disorders, traumatic injury or severe illness. There Jaelyn continued to have Occupational and Physical therapy (OT and PT) and slowly but surely started making progress. After being discharged Jaelyn went back to a semi-normal life and returned to school. Her fight didn't stop there however, Jaelyn was still weak, and although she was able to recover function to her right leg, and some strength to her neck, she has still not recovered function to her right arm. Due to this Jaelyn has been having OT and PT 3-4 times a week, which is billed at $700 for each 25 minute sessions. Jaelyn has not been making much progress in regards to recovery in her right arm and her doctor has decided that the last option to save her arm is to try a nerve transplant. Due to there being cosmetic surgery involved her insurance will not cover the operation. Jaelyn needs this surgery in order to possibly gain back function in her right arm. Jaelyn's mother is a single, working mother who is struggling to cover Jaelyn's medical expenses. Her mother has repeatedly had to miss work and take time off to make sure Jaelyn gets to her therapy and doctor visits. Her mother has exhausted all of her resources, in the hope of giving Jaelyn the opportunity to get better and live a normal, happy life. Medical expenses are piling up, and despite trying her best, she has become overwhelmed with stress from medical expenses the insurance company didn't cover. Jaeyln's surgery is just a few days away and while it is hard for her mother to ask for help, she could use assistance paying for Jaelyn's surgery and other medical expenses. Jaelyn is an innocent little girl who has had the misfortune of developing AFM and her family would greatly appreciate your help in supporting​ Jaelyn and her family through this tough time. Even the littlest contribution would mean the world to Jaelyn and her family. While misfortune falls upon many I ask you that if you are able to that you help Jaelyn and her family as Jaelyn is simply an innocent little girl who just had a little bit of bad luck. If you are unable to donate we simply ask that you share this with your friends, family and neighbors as well as keep Jaelyn and her family in your prayers. I would like to thank each and every one of you in advance for your help and prayers.