Help Olivia and Family raise money

June 3rd is Clubfoot Awareness Day in honour of Dr. Ponseti who developed a nonsurgical method to treat clubfoot through gentle manipulation and casting. His method revolutionized clubfoot treatment as prior to this method clubfoot was treated with surgery which often resulted in pain and additional surgeries. Clubfoot is a fairly common congenital deformity with approximately 1 in a 1000 babies worldwide born with a clubfoot. 

We found out Olivia had a clubfoot during the 20 week ultrasound and were told it was an easily treated congenital condition that would involved some casts and bracing. 

At just one week old Olivia started the casting process. It was a bumpy start. Olivia was constantly upset and inconsolable as cast were changed weekly. Being unfamiliar with clubfoot treatment, we went along with what were were told by our doctor and her team. Unfortunately the treatment we received was causing damage to Olivia’s foot as the casts were not placed correctly and cutting off circulation.  

After the casting process, Olivia was fitted with a brace, commonly referred to as boots and bar in the clubfoot community, to hold her foot in the correct position as she grew. Since casting was such a difficult time for Olivia we were excited to be on to the next stage of her treatment. However, like the casting we ran into problems with the boots and bar. After raising concerns with the doctor and her team that Olivia’s foot did not seem right and she was unable to move her foot, Olivia’s doctor informed us that she would need surgery and it was best to wait until she was older. Olivia’s foot was relapsing. 

Since waiting for surgery wasn’t sitting well with me, I started researching clubfoot treatment and discovered Dr. Pirani, a world renowned clubfoot orthopaedic surgeon who practiced the Ponseti method. Dr. Pirani performed a miracle and with just 3 casts and no discomfort, Olivia could walk and run again. 

It was also discovered that Olivia had nerve impairment in her clubfoot leg and foot making her high risk to relapse. It is unknown if this was something that she was born with or if perhaps this was a complication caused by improper casting. Because of the nerve impairment, Olivia has a long road ahead of her with future treatment needed to maintain her foot. 

Some amazing clubfoot parents, volunteers and Dr. Pirani have just started a registered charity, Canadian Clubfoot Support Society, to help provide other parents and families with information to guide them through clubfoot treatment and to promote awareness for the need of properly trained doctors so that other clubfoot babies don’t have to experience the bumps that Olivia has had to go through.  

Please join Olivia in the Move Your Body Challenge for the month of June to raise awareness for clubfoot and support the Canadian Clubfoot Support Society. Any donations over $20 will receive a Charitable Donation receipt.