Adam and ABR

Adam was diagnosed with Spastic Quadriplegia and Anoxic Encephalopathy after he almost drowned when he was 12. Now 25, Adam has been doing Advanced Biomechanical Rehabilitation (ABR) since he was 16. Please read what Adam's Dad, Phil, has to say about their chosen course of treatment, and why they chose it:

How did you hear about ABR?

HBOT Parent Group

Why did you decide to try it?

Our belief that surgical or drug interventions to mitigate severe spasticity would be inappropriate and we desired a non-invasive but scientifically based therapy

How old was Adam when he started this treatment?

16 years old

Describe a typical session:

Kids are initially evaluated yearly and attend four training sessions which last about 4-5 days each. Parents must make a commitment to implement this therapy for at least 3 hours daily.

ABR believe that in cases of brain injury, ie, cp, anoxia, etc. there is a systemic collapse of the myofascial layers of the body. This collapse leads to a lack of mobility, spasticity, scoliosis and a host of structural distortions which prevent mobility.

ABR Exercises are targeted to specific areas of the body and parts use a variety of transfer media to rebuild the myofascial structures which support the bone, etc.

The parents rebuild over years the collapse of the body and with a more normalized structure you have greater mobility and then function.

The developer's site is www.blyum.com. It is heavily researched from a scientific basis and there are evaluation and training centers throughout the world. ABR does not support surgery, standers, mechanical devices to correct the structural deficits caused by spasticity and collapse. Traditional PT is also contra-indicated.

Please share some of the changes (good and bad) you saw in your child:

Great reduction in spasticity, more mobility, increased body stability and had control, correction of scoliosis, prevention of need for any surgery especially hip subluxation.

Would you recommend it to someone in a similar situation?

Absolutely

What do you wish you had known when you were making the decision to try it out?

Only wish that we knew of the programs much earlier in my son's rehabilitation and that we knew of the negative effects of traditional PT/OT approaches to structural changes in the body.

Please share some more details of your experiences.

There is a wide international support group of ABR parents and we have been involved since 2002.

Phil and his wife keep a hugely informative blog here, which I highly recommend you visit!!