Spinal Cord Surgery

Hi Friends and Family-

This is really hard for my husband and I to do, but we are asking for your help.  This is an urgent matter, and we ask that you help spread the word with us to reach as many people as possible.  

My husband and I are needing to raise money to help pay for Spinal Cord surgery our 9yr old daughter, Kirra,  which is quickly approaching on May 7th!  Kirra was born with a partially developed sacrum, which is causing some complications within her spine, spinal cord, and lower muscles.  She has a minor form of Sacrum Agenesis which they believe is related to the tension on her spinal cord.  That tension is causing her scoliosis to progress quicker and worsening her bladder control.

Kirra hasn't had it easy since we noticed her lack of 'normal' movement of the tender age of 6months old.  Kirra didn't learn to crawl,  walk, or even talk when normal kids her age were.  Because of her low muscle tone, she didn't start the crawling process until she was around 14months old.  With the help of physical therapy, patience, tears, and time...Kirra took her first steps on September 11th, 2010....just shy of her 2nd birthday.  After PT, then came Speech Therapy.  Kirra's brain couldn't fire normal, so other than babbles, Kirra wouldn't say much.  Kirra started an early intervention pre-school at the age of 3, instead of getting to be home playing with me and her new little brother.  Not too long after she started school, we noticed her shoulders weren't even and she stood with one leg bent.  Many doctor visits, chiropractors, x-rays, and second/third opinions later, we were told Kirra has Scoliosis and her curvature was pretty bad for her age.  At a 30+ degree curve, anything more than 50 degrees would require spine surgery.  Then started the road of wearing a Scoliosis brace when little Kirra was only 4yrs old.  
With all that figured out, we thought we were out of the woods and on the road to recovery for our sweet Kirra.  But then we noticed she was retreating with her potty training, and started to have a hard time holding her pee.  We started seeing Dr. Shafron and his Urologist team at Phoenix Childrens.  After some more tests and MRI's that he discovered her sacrum deformity and her spinal cord complications.  He wanted to keep a watch on her for a couple of months to confirm that the surgery would be necessary.  With his guidance on what to look for, it was decided that it was infact time to take action.  He informed me that with her condition, all symptoms that she has and any new ones she develops are irreversible.  So.....the reason to get this done now!

With your contributions, this surgery will help stop the progression of her current symptoms and prevent other symptoms from arising, due to her condition.  The longer the surgery is delayed, the worse her symptoms become and they are non-reversible.  Besides her scoliosis and bladder control issues, her muscle tone in her legs will become weaker,  she will start to loose control of her bowel moments, and another surgery will have to be performed to straighten her spine.

We appreciate anything you can do to help! 

Prayers are always welcome for Kirra, her family and of course the doctor working on her, Dr. Shafron!

Thank you,

Christina & Nate